The Intergalactic War
by Chief Ratchet
Summary: On Hold. They have discovered a galaxy quite unlike their own...Star Wars crossover. Chapter 13 is now up. Not only must the Alliance deal with their enemy sweeping across their space, they now must fight a threat the Forerunners couldn't control....
1. A New Face

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: This is the first Star Wars and Halo crossover I have done. It takes place after the Sith-Imperial War, when the Galactic Alliance defeated the Sith, and the Empire has joined the Alliance. In the Halo universe, it takes place after the Covenant War, and the Elites, Grunts and Hunters have joined the UNSC, now named the UCNC or the United Covenant Naval Command. Enjoy and review!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, or anything related to it. I do not own Halo, or anything to do about it either.

Chapter 1: A New Face

* * *

As the lava lakes in Mustafar bubbled and boiled, a sole figure moved through the haze. The figure looked like an oversized bug, and then it was revealed. It was a Geonosian. The Geonosian's name was Mizor Dellego. He flew over the lava pools and landed in a building. Stepping in the building, he took a good look around. A flashing light on one of the data terminals caught his attention. He flew over to it. The view screen read:

DEACTIVATION SIGNAL DECTECTED

STAND BY FOR CHECK

CODES CONFIRMED. SIGNAL SENT TO ALL UNITS

SECONDARY BACK UP CODES AVAILABLE

SECONDARY DROID FOUNDRIES WAITING FOR BACK UP CODE

CODES ARE: DRDACTVSIG02FAC484

Mizor took a look around. Droid foundries for creating more battle droids, which could start another war._ Good_, he thought. _Just what I needed_. He quickly flew over to another console. Typing in the code, he was satisfied when he heard the steady _beep beep beep _of the machine verifying the codes. A message popped up on the screen this time it read:

SIGNAL VERIFIED. SHIPYARDS AND FOUNDRIES ACTIVATED

This was followed by a sudden noise which startled Mizor. Listening intently, he soon recognized it as the shipyards coming online. The whole shipyard here was completely automated, with robots doing all the work. The material was drawn from the lava, so the ships would have a reddish tinge, he noted. Mizor went to the balcony on the east side of the complex he was standing in. He saw the droid foundries, gigantic buildings which belched out smoke and soot, which didn't look out of place in this hellhole.

* * *

A few weeks later, Mizor remembered something. The droids here had to have some secondary orders in case the central control mainframe was disabled or destroyed. Flying quickly to the main data terminal, he sliced into the systems and programmed some orders into the droids.

Order number one was to eliminate all non-droid forces, then regroup at a suitable location. The second order was to regroup with commander for orders. In order for the second order to be carried out, Mizor typed in the more advanced orders for the commander droids.

Satisfied with his work, Mizor settled down and watched as the droid foundries churned out Battle Droids, Super Battle Droids and the fearsome Droidekas. He watched the screen on the left, seeing how the ships were. Already, some of the _Recusant_-class light destroyers were beginning to take shape. The _Recusants_ would be the backbone of the fleet, cheap and expendable. Another backbone of the new Confederate Navy would be the _Munificent_-class frigates, to be used much like the _Recusants_: cheap and expendable.

The vehicle foundry was also active; it was mass producing the AAT tanks, and the MTT transports. Hailfire droids were being produced as well. Mizor suspected that there was a large amount of construction droids inside these factories; there was no other way for so many vehicles and starships to be produced at such a rate after being active for only a few weeks. Still, he wasn't complaining.

Looking over at the screens again, he noted that there were an immense number of foundries and factories. He had spent the last few days finding more factories and mapping them. He had found about nine droid foundries, and each one could manufacture about a hundred droids every six hours. Doing the maths, he knew that there was about three thousand six hundred Battle Droids produced every. Unfortunately, that amount could be destroyed quite easily, since they were not the smartest soldiers around, or even the best shot.

The production of the Super Battle Droids and Droidekas was going steady. However, they could only be produced at a rate of one hundred every day, not quite the amount Mizor was hoping for. The _Recusants_ and _Munificent_ frigates were being produced at a rate of one every day. This was largely thanks to the fact that Mizor had dedicated a large number of construction droids to the shipyards. The rate of production was now approaching two a day, and with time, three ships every day.

A panel on one of the long range sensors started to beep insistently. Mizor approached it and was surprised to see a fleet of ships that resembled gigantic rings approach. There were approximately one hundred and fifty of the ships heading along the way to his position. "This is the Trade Federation _Lucrehulk_-class battleship _Profit_. We are detecting CIS ships being produced in orbit. We will join you, if you are resurrecting the CIS." The monotone voice announced through the speakers.

Mizor almost jumped with joy when he heard the statement. He needed more ships, and the Trade Federation was willing to provide it. He opened a secure communication channel to the lead ship. "This is Mizor Dellego, current leader of the CIS. I am attempting to revive the CIS from its untimely demise, but I needed more helpers. All the foundries here are working as fast as they can in producing war machines, but more help will accelerate the process."

"Very well. We will provide you with more workers, and the few thousand Battle Droids that we have, as well as assault vehicles and tanks."

Mizor was glad. Now he could manufacture even more droids and war droids, and could spend some time finding even more droid foundries to contribute to the CIS war effort. _One of these days, the CIS would rise_ _again_, thought Mizor. _Soon, very soon would the CIS rise and restart the Clone Wars._ It was only a matter of time before the darkness would envelope the galaxy.

* * *

(A.N: Well, what do you think? Is it good, or is it so bad that I should quit the story altogether? Tell me what you think, please! R&R everybody!) 


	2. Another Remnant

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: This chapter of the story will be about the Halo characters, and in the Halo universe. The two universes will collide at the end of this chapter, and when the next chapter comes up, they will meet.)

Reviews:

Medicational Poison: Thanks for the review and support! Here's the next chapter!

ODST 357: Thank you for the review as well. I chose it to be after the Yuuzhan Vong war because I read enough Halo/Star Wars crossovers and most detail and Empire and UNSC at war with each other. I thought that it might be nice to have a change.

Ten Wings: Here is the update!

Disclaimer: I do not own Halo or Star Wars or anything to do with them.

Chapter 2: Another Remnant:

* * *

In space, there are two dimensions. One of them is real-space, and the other is the non-Einstein realm of faster than Light travel, known as Slipspace. A portal to Slipspace opened, and out of the portal came two hundred ships, all of varying shapes and sizes and design, from UNSC ships to Covenant ships, and from relatively small corverttes, to gigantic carriers.

One ship stood out from the rest of the fleet. It was larger than the biggest carrier in the fleet, and was easily twenty kilometres long. The ship was the flagship of the fleet, and was commanded by the Arbiter, the Supreme Commander of the New Covenant Navy.

The ship was a _Hybrid_-class Battle carrier, the _Divine Blade_, and was one of the three _Hybrids_ in existence. _Hybrids_ were armed to the teeth with both Covenant and UNSC weapons. The _Hybrids_ was a Covenant Assault Carrier in appearance, with a single bulbous section, but inside there was plenty of human technology as well. The Hybrids had the same internal structure of a _Halcyon_-class cruiser, and had the latest reactor technology of both the Covenant and the UNSC. The Hybrids actually had not one, but five reactors fitted into the enormous ships.

Three of the reactors were the latest in Covenant reactor design, and were used to power the ship's engines. The other two were of human design, and used to power the _Divine Blade_'s numerous weapons systems. The _Divine Blade_ could actually go as fast as a Covenant cruiser, despite its size.

All _Hybrids_ were armed with the latest weapons, and the _Divine Blade_ was no exception. Armed with plasma torpedos, plasma lances (the plasma weapon Cortana changed on the _Ascendant Justice_), to Archer missiles, the newer Crossbow missiles, to even a miniaturized Super MAC gun, mounted below the ship. The Super MAC was a full ten kilometres, though some of it was used to load the shell and supply power.

Three CCS Battle cruisers as well as three UNSC destroyers flew cover and flanked the enormous flagship of the Fleet of Retribution. Covenant Seraph fighters and UNSC Longsword interceptors flew in formation around the fleet. The Fleet was assembled for one reason: Find and destroy the remaining Old Covenant fleet. The fleet they were chasing after was the last of the Old Covenant fleet.

Onboard the bridge of the _Divine Blade_, the Arbiter stood and watched as the fleet formed up into a conical shape, with the _Divine Blade _out in front. On the left chest plate of his ceremonial armour, there was the UNSC badge of Fleet Admiral. It was attached through a magnetic system. He had earned it after saving Earth from the Old Covenant invasion. Admiral Hood had presented to him during an award ceremony, and that was the place where he had earned himself a UNSC citizenship.

"Arbiter? The fleet is ready, and they await your command." The voice belonged to Cortana, the _Divine Blade_'s AI.

"Very well. Give all the captains the signal, and have our escort break off, though have the _Honesty_ and the _Hornet_ stay close. Have the carriers _Zeus_, _Wasp_, and _Akagi_ stay back to provide fighter support, and the other carriers to remain at the centre of the fleet." The Arbiter took a pause, and then proceeded to watch the view screens.

"Arbiter! The stealth patrol craft report that the Brute fleet is moving towards an outbound sector, and that they are preparing to make a jump!" The report came from the Elite at the communication console. The report shook the Arbiter from his thoughts.

"Give a channel to all ships in the fleet!" There was no mistaking in the urgency in his tone. The Brute fleet had over two hundred ships that could cause major damage to wherever they were going.

"The channel is open, Arbiter."

"All ships, accelerate towards the Brute fleet! Try to destroy as many as you can before they make the jump into Slipspace! All fighters, move towards the carriers, now! Navigation, push the reactors to the limit, and weapons, charge all weapons, especially the Super MAC."

The Arbiter felt the floor under his feet shift a little. The entire Fleet of Retribution was accelerating to each the Brute ships before the Brute fleet jumped. Cortana displayed a timer on the holopedestal, showing the time in when the Brute ships would make the jump, and when the Fleet of Retribution would be within firing range. The time was alarmingly close to each other.

Finally, they were in weapons range, though the Brute fleet would jump in about thirty seconds. "All ships, pick your targets and fire at will!" The Arbiter ordered into the communication system.

The entire Retribution fleet fired their weapons; plasma torpedoes, MAC rounds and missiles flew into the Brute fleet. Unfortunately, the ships the Slipspace engines charged, and so only a few ships were destroyed. A few were damaged, but not nearly the amount the Arbiter was hoping for.

The Arbiter let out a sigh of frustration. "All ships, return to formation. Power down weapons, and charge the Slipspace generators. Cortana will provide you the co-ordinates." With that, the Arbiter closed the communication channel. "Cortana? What was the Brute fleet's co-ordinates and destination? We may be able to intercept them."

Cortana paused a moment before answering. "The Brute's fleet destination is not on any of the star charts. They're not even in this galaxy. However, I got their co-ordinates. I'm transmitting them to all the other ships in the fleet."

"Good. Then at least we can follow them. Have all non necessary crew enter cyro. Time how long it takes to get to the destination, then wake them an hour before hand." The Arbiter walked out towards the doors. A familiar lurching signalled the fact that they were entering Slipspace.

The Arbiter walked towards the direction of the vehicle bays. Along the way, he passed many of the crew who were heading towards the cyro bays. He almost bumped into a large, armoured form. He stared into the orange faceplate, despite the fact that he was a bit taller.

"Hello, Demon." The Arbiter knew that there were five Spartans aboard the ship. He knew most of them, and could even recognize a few in their trade mark armour.

John-117, or the Master Chief, smiled beneath his helmet. "The name's John. Or Master Chief, not 'Demon'."

The Arbiter also smiled, his top two mandibles separating slightly. "Oh, I apologize, bad habit of mine."

After a small conversation, the Arbiter walked on. Despite being so big, there was a relatively small crew onboard, no more than fifteen thousand, of which eight thousand were Engineers, which explained the relatively small crew size (considering the size of the ship).

When the Arbiter reached the vehicle bays, he stopped and watched as Engineers, Elites, Grunts and humans made repairs and checks on the enormous amount of vehicles in the bay. There were Ghosts, single one man light attack and reconnaissance vehicles, Spectres, a small four man transport with a mounted rapid fire plasma cannon, Wraith tanks, Shadows, larger troop transports, to Scorpion tanks featuring an upgraded 120mm cannon, and a 50cal machine gun.

The aerial vehicles were kept above the ground vehicles for ease of launch, and the gigantic Scarab walkers were kept in a different section. The entire vehicle bay was awe-inspiring, and there were still about five other bays kept across the entire ship.

The _Hybrids_ were designated 'Battle carriers' because they had the firepower of an Assault Carrier, yet had the fighter compliment of carrier. They were designed to be a mobile base that could reach anywhere, and to be a flagship in any fleet. The three that were in existence were commanded by the best Admirals or Ship Masters. The third _Hybrid_ was actually still under construction, though it will be finished quite soon. With a smile, the Arbiter left the vehicle bay and headed back to his quarters. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

In another part of space, in another galaxy, things weren't quite so peaceful. The entire area was filled with turbolaser bolts, exploding ships and starfighters dancing a on a deadly path. In the battle were the sinister skeletal shapes of the CIS _Recusant_ and _Munificent _class light destroyers and frigates respectively. On the other side were the triangular shapes of the Imperial Star Destroyers, and the organic shapes of the Mon Calamari Star Cruisers.

Every ship was lighting up with turbolaser barrages, and the Galactic Alliance fleet was desperately trying to hold off the unrelenting CIS fleet. Though the CIS ships were fairly easy to destroy, it seemed that for every _Recusant_ destroyed, two more would take its place on the battlefield. In the middle of the battle, droid Vulture fighters were flying, and blasting laser bolts at the Alliance and Imperial fighters. The Y-Wings and TIE Bombers were making bombing runs over the CIS capital ships, and X-Wings and TIE Fighters and TIE Defenders were escorting them to deliver their devastating payload. A-Wings and TIE Interceptors were defending the Alliance ships from enemy bombers.

From the bridge of the _Imperial_-class Star Destroyer _Vengeance_, Captain Chad Piett, watched as the battle raged on. The CIS tactics were ones he had described as suicidal: they charged at ships, or engaged them at point-blank with turbolasers set at maximum power. However, the battle was taking its toll on the Alliance fleet; many ships had been destroyed when they were ganged up on by multiple _Recusants_. "Have all batteries target that _Munificent_." He ordered. The _Munificent_ was damaged, most likely by a bombing run. The turbolaser barrage tore the _Munificent_ apart.

Captain Piett was now concerned; over half the fleet was destroyed, and the enemy fleet showed no signs of being diminished. In fact, it looked bigger than when he had first seen it. "All forward proton torpedo tubes, target that _Recusant_ in front of us. The _Vengeance_ shook from taking another turbolaser hit from the heavy turbolaser cannon of a _Recusant_. The _Vengeance_ was in good condition, as it had only taken a few light turbolaser hits, as well as a proton bomb from a bomber. Other ships were not as lucky.

"Sir? Incoming transmission from the flagship."

"Put it up on the main screen" ordered Piett.

The main holographic screen on the left of the view ports came to life, and the face of a Bothan came up. The Bothan was the commander of the defence of Thyferra, an important planet due to it being the main supplier of bacta to the Alliance, and the CIS must have realized that. The Bothan's name was Borsk Fenallaya. The Bothan commanded from the _Endurance_-class fleet carrier.

"All ships, you are to hold position. We have to keep this world under our control no matter what. Prepare all turbolaser batte-" the Bothan's speech was cut off mid-sentence when a _Munificent_ frigate dropped the shields of the carrier and rammed it a full speed. Both ships went up in a solid ball of flame, and the view screen winked off.

Piett knew that they were in a spot of trouble now. The commander was now space dust, and the CIS fleet showed no signs of stopping, when a communication line opened.

"All vessels tasked with defending Thyferra, retreat. Thyferra is lost now. Repeat. This is Grand Admiral Pellaeon, and all vessels defending Thyferra are retreat. Rendezvous at Mon Calamari."

As soon as the line was closed, Piett turned to his bridge crew. "You heard the man. Power up the hyperspace engines, and set the course to Mon Calamari."

As soon as the last vessel had entered hyperspace, the CIS fleet moved in, victorious, and proceeded to subjugate Thyferra. The CIS was advancing.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the galaxy, a portal opened and out slipped two hundred tear shaped vessels. The Brutes had just set foot in a new galaxy.

* * *

(A.N: Whew, that took the better part of the day to write up. Anyway, the Brutes will clash with the Alliance and CIS in the next chapter. The Fleet of Retribution will come after the next chapter. Oh, and by the way, I will use the term Alliance which means both the Empire and the Rebels. Read and Review please!) 


	3. First Contact

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Okay people, here is the next update. Sorry about the long wait, especially to the loyal readers and fans of this fic (well, long considering that I update almost daily during the holidays). This is the chapter you have all been awaiting: the Brutes meet the Alliance and the CIS! In combat. Oh, and by the way, the CIS has been waging war against the Alliance for quite some time, so quite a few planets and star systems are under their control now. And all the Spartan twos are on the _Divine Blade_. That includes Kelly, who was missing in action. So have fun reading!)

Reviews:

Shadow Gravemind: Thank you, and I will show some land action later in the next chapter. That means that Droidekas and Hunters will come in next chapter. Most likely Hunters will as well as Droidekas. I promise that they definitely will next chapter. Keep reviewing, and more chapters will be added!

TenWings: Here's the next update. Also, please add something informative in your next review as I would like to know if it is A grade material or not. Thank you.

Star wars 2136: The next chapter is here! I got the idea from many others, and I wanted to write one as well. Enjoy this chapter!

Shadow Gravemind: Sorry, you reviewed just as I was typing the second chapter up, a bit late, but for your second review, you think so? I'm not going to make it easy for either side.

Tilthanial: Thank you the words of encouragement. I really appreciate it.

really-great-noodles1: Here is the battle scene!

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, or anything associated with it. I do not own Halo, or anything to do with it either. Wish I did though.

Darth Baka: Here is the update. Thanks for reviewing.

Chapter 3: First Contact

* * *

As the silver teardrop vessels exited the realm of Slipspace, all of them stopped moving. The engines were dull, indicating that they were not active. The vessels were also dull, without life, and the plasma conduits were inactive. That began to change soon. The engines fired up, and the plasma conduits glowed a bright blue. Lights flickered and then turned on. 

Inside the bridge of the lead Assault Carrier, a Prophet sat on its Hover Chair. The wizened alien looked around the bridge surveying the area of space surrounding the craft and all the others in the fleet. As it looked around the bridge, the hairy, ape-like aliens, known as Brutes, it looked at bowed down respectfully. They had narrowly escaped the UCNC Navy, and the heretic Elites that had joined them. However, the Fleet of Retribution would catch up with them eventually.

Once that happened, the remains of the Covenant Armada they were would fall. The _Divine Blade_ would tear apart the Armada, and would destroy most of the ships before it was destroyed. They lacked the heavy ships needed to combat such a capable ship. So they had to move, before that happened. "Where is the nearest planet, Ship Master?" questioned the Prophet in a low, raspy voice.

"The nearest planet is almost three thousand units away, Holy One." Holy One. It was the only title they would address him as, and the Prophet of Salvation liked it.

"Then proceeded as fast as the Gods will guide us, Ship Master."

"Of course, Holy Prophet. All ships, prepare to move. We will proceed to these co-ordinates, and wipe out the filth that lives there." The Ship Master ordered. Then, as one, the Brute Armada moved towards the planet of Yavin, and the orbiting moon of Yavin 4. A great battle was already raging between the dominant CIS fleet and the ragged Alliance fleet. Unknown to the combatants, they were about to receive visitors, and very unfriendly ones at that.

* * *

Meanwhile, in orbit around the historic moon, a fierce battle raged. The Alliance was definitely not having a good day, as more than three quarters of their fleet was in ruins, and the ones that were still intact were beginning to look like a wreck, with numerous holes in the sides in nearly every ship. 

The captain of the vessel now in charge, Captain Marcus, sat at the seat on the bridge the Nebulon-B3 frigate the _Redeemer_, with a worried look on face. The attack had been an ambush, and the fleet was in serious trouble. The reinforcements were now smoking shipwrecks, destroyed by the CIS fleet. All that was left of the Alliance fleet were the frigates and corvettes; all the other ships were gone.

When the CIS attacked, the first thing they hit was the Mon Calamari Star Cruisers and the Imperial Star Destroyers. That meant the most powerful ships they had were destroyed, leaving the weaker ships to be finished off. Even though the _Redeemer_ was the latest in the line of _Nebulon_ vessels, they were still no match for the larger _Recusants_ and _Munificents_.

"XO, what is the status of the fleet?" asked the captain.

"Nearly all the ships are destroyed. We and three corvettes as well as three other Nebulons."

Captain Marcus cursed under his breath. The situation had gone from bad to worse, and now it was FUBAR. _If I am to go down, why not take a few of them with me_, he wondered. _The fleet is about to be destroyed, and I want to leave a lasting impression, so I might as well take down their flagship. A flagship for a flagship. Hmmmm, not bad. _"Navigation, set a collision course with their flagship, and sound the evacuation alarms." He ordered.

"Done sir. It was a pleasure to work with you."

"Pleasures mine, boys. Launch all escape pods that are full or nearly full."

The enemy flagship was the last thing he saw before the light enveloped him and the _Redeemer_.

* * *

With the Alliance fleet destroyed, the CIS fleet moved in to occupy the planet. The destruction of the CIS flagship had reduced the fleet to a third of its original size. Just then, the long range sensors on the ships detected a large force approaching them. The whole fleet turned to engage the new arrivals, and were met with a wall of fire. The plasma torpedoes fired burned through the ships. The CIS ships weren't designed to take such firepower, and most of the fleet was destroyed only seconds after the plasma hit. The few survivors of the battered fleet were met with a second wall of plasma. 

As the last remnants of the CIS fleet was burned away, the victorious Covenant fleet moved in and started to circle the lush moon of Yavin 4. After some time, on command, the ships circling stopped and a red glow gathered on the sides of the ships. The plasma gathered then discharged into the moon below. The forests of the moon burned, even as another wave of plasma hit the planet. For the first time in the Alliance history, a planet was glassed by the Covenant, and nearly a hundred and forty years after the first Death Star, the Covenant succeeded in doing what the Empire was unable to do and destroyed Yavin 4.

The Covenant had introduced themselves into the fray. Back to where the Covenant came into the galaxy, another two hundred ships exited. In the lead was a twenty kilometre ship, the Divine Blade. The Covenant could now no longer hide. The Fleet of Retribution had arrived.

* * *

(A.N: Whew, another chapter done. This chapter is shorter than the last one because of a time constraint and the fact that I needed to get it done before the connection to the Internet cuts off. Well, the Covenant is in the fray, and the Alliance is going to have their hands full with the CIS and the Covenant. But the Covenant is also in danger. With the Fleet of Retribution hunting them, things are going to get messy in the next chapter!Also, FUBAR stand for F Up Beyond All Repair. Read and Review please!) 


	4. Liberation of Dac, Pt1

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Thanks to all the reviewers who, well, reviewed. Sorry if the last chapter was rushed, this one will hopefully make up for the relatively short chapter. Finally, ground battles, aren't you glad? There will be space action, and the Alliance will meet the Brutes in combat. Also, I apologize about the misconception about the destruction of Yavin 4. It happens forty years after the Death Stars destruction, not a hundred and forty years, sorry! Happy reading, and sorry about the long wait!)

Reviews:

Star wars 2136: Well, that depends on how the situation goes. Having Jedi in the story might be good, but the Jedi are to strong. Still, a few might appear. Keep reviewing!

Wirespeed91: Yes, I forgot to mention that I suck at summaries. Still, never judge a book by its cover. Thanks for the review!

brian: Thanks, and here is the next update for all you fans out there!

kwangmablade: Thanks and here is what happens next!

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, or anything related to Star Wars. It belongs to George Lucas. I do not own Halo, or anything to do with it either. Halo and everything related to Halo belongs to Bungie.

Chapter 4: Liberation of Dac, Pt.1

* * *

As the Fleet of Retribution exited from Slipspace, the CIS was already hard at work preparing for yet another assault on a helpless planet. It so happened that the staging area for the assault on Mon Calamari was extremely close to where the Fleet of Retribution had entered the galaxy. A full three hundred ships were ready to subjugate Mon Calamari under the CIS. 

On the bridge of the _Divine Blade_, the Arbiter stood and looked out at the stars. They were very different from the ones he was used to seeing on his side of the galaxy. He knew that they were in a different galaxy when all of the scans of where the planets should have been were not there. As he walked around the bridge, he looked over at the various consoles that a human or an Elite operated.

Most of the consoles had readouts about the system they were related to, but the one console that caught his attention was the active scanner. It showed a large cluster of dots not far from their position. The scanner could not identify if they were hostile or allies, so it coloured the dots orange for either neutral or unknown. The scanner managed to detect that they were large enough to be capital ships. To the Arbiter, it was troubling to have seen so many ships clustered together.

"Cortana, scan these ships and match up their profiles with any of our ships and see if it matches." It had taken him a long time to get used to calling the human A.I by her name, as well as most of the A.Is. He had only gotten used to it in the last few cycles.

"Arbiter, I have done the scan, and compared them as you asked, but none of them matches the shapes of any of our ships. They don't even come close to matching ours, in fact." Cortana stopped as she continued to analyse the ships and the shapes. They were very different in design from the Covenant ships, with skeletal structures and with exposed superstructures and most of them featured larger cannons on the underside of the ship.

There were five larger ships in the mix as well; ring shaped ships with a core in the middle. The more detailed scans revealed the ring ships were about three kilometres in diameter. "Arbiter, I suggest that we attempt to raise a communication line with them as the protocol indicates. However, I suggest that we leave about a quarter of our strength here in case it is a trap."

"Very well then, Cortana. Sound the alarm, and order everyone to their battle stations. Cortana, warm up all our weapons, and push the weapon reactors to maximum; we have a lot of weapons to charge, if you haven't noticed. Make sure that all the missile turrets are loaded and ready." Ordered the Arbiter.

The missile turrets were the latest in missile technology. It was based around the fact that though missile pods were effective, they were fixed, so they could only fire to a certain degree. The missile turret was essentially five Archer pods locked into a rotating turret. The turret could rotate a full three hundred and sixty degrees, as well as being capable of facing ninety degrees vertically. There were ten missile turrets arrayed across the entire ship.

The Arbiter watched the status of the weapons charge through the main control screen in front of him. The plasma torpedo launchers were ready, the plasma lances were almost ready, and the Accelerated Particle Cannons were ready. The _Divine Blade_ had two of the Cannons, and they were very deadly. They were the same weapon used in the UNSC over Reach.

Then, he checked the status of the human weapons. The five MAC Cannons were fully charged, with three of the turrets mounted at the bow of the ship, and two mounted at the stern. All five hundred missile pods were armed, and the Super MAC was at eighty percent charge, and climbing. Although he didn't want to fight, he was unsure about the warships. They were very sinister in design, hinting about the style of the manufacturers. Still, he wasn't about to start a war, or lose a potential ally. As soon as all the weapons were charged, he ordered fifty of his ships to

When they were in range, the Arbiter opened a communication line with the vessel in the lead. "Unknown vessel, identify yourself. This is the Arbiter of the New Covenant and in command of the _Divine Blade_. Respond."

When no answer came back, the Arbiter repeated the message through the link again. And again, the vessels did not respond to the communication link. The third try was more successful.

The warships slowed, and turned to face the Fleet of Retribution. "Arbiter! The weapons on those ships are charging, and there is a spike in the energy levels that are directed to the engines! They are engaging us!" Cortana's voice sounded through the speakers. Her holographic form appeared on the holopedestal near him. "No diplomatic solution this time. Much like when we met you."

The Arbiter gave a small smile, the top mandibles moving ever so slightly, showing razor sharp teeth. "True, but we did send you a message." He pointed out.

"A message talking about our doom." Cortana shot back.

By this time, the CIS fleet was getting closer to the Fleet of Retribution. On board the _Lucrehulk_-class battleship _Profiteer_, the captain watched with shock at the size of the lead ship. It was as large as the feared Super Star Destroyers, and was strange in design as well; it had flowing curves, and was sleek. It didn't resemble any ship he knew, so the Neimodian captain ordered all the ships to attack the 'Fleet of Retribution' as they had called themselves. He settled back and hoped for the best.

_

* * *

Boom. The __Divine Blade_ shook from another minor hit on its shields. Still, the _Divine Blade_ was performing grandly for her first combat experience. The enemy ships were designed for attacking in numbers, as the Arbiter had found out. On their own, only the ring ships could hold their own. The ships used, curiously enough, some form of laser, which had some explosive properties. The bolts were fired together, as a single bolt couldn't do enough damage, it seemed. However, the most of the ships possessed large laser cannons, which was quite effective, when they were fired in groups. . The shook from another minor hit on its shields. Still, the was performing grandly for her first combat experience. The enemy ships were designed for attacking in numbers, as the Arbiter had found out. On their own, only the ring ships could hold their own. The ships used, curiously enough, some form of laser, which had some explosive properties. The bolts were fired together, as a single bolt couldn't do enough damage, it seemed. However, the most of the ships possessed large laser cannons, which was quite effective, when they were fired in groups. 

"Fire Plasma Lances three, five and seven, consecutively at the ship at port." Ordered the Arbiter. One after the other, three thin beams of plasma shot out from the left side of the _Divine Blade_, and punched through the shields and armour of the Recusant light destroyer on the left hand side of the _Divine Blade_. The Recusant exploded into a fireball a moment later.

The Plasma Lances were numbered according to their position on the _Divine Blade_. All the Plasma Lance turrets on the left were given all the odd numbers from one to nine. All of the Plasma Lances on the right were given even numbers from two to ten. The Plasma Torpedo launchers were numbered in the same manner. The MAC Cannons were always fired in groups, so the firepower was always optimal.

Things were going well for the Fleet of Retribution. Over a hundred enemy ships were destroyed, and for the loss of about twenty five ships. The Seraphs were bombing enemy ships, as well as the Longswords. The Divine Blade was cutting a path of destruction where ever it moved, as the pulse lasers, plasma weapons and MAC rounds tore through the enemy fleet.

"Weapons, charge the Super MAC and fire when ready. Cortana, have you finished hacking into their database yet?" asked the Arbiter.

Cortana replied a second later. "Yes, I have hacked into their database. Not much, but I do know that this galaxy is in a state of war. We are fighting the CIS, which consists of droids. The ships here are the _Recusant_ light destroyers, the _Munificent_ frigates and the _Lucrehulk_ battleships. They're all expendable, mass produced. Their ground troops consist of droids as well." The Arbiter grunted in response to her statement. The battle was going well, though he had lost even more ships in the fierce fighting. He knew now that they would never retreat. He was going to have to turn every last CIS warship into floating space debris. He didn't mind. It was a long time since he had experienced a battle of this magnitude. He enjoyed the adrenaline rush every time the ship shook.

At long last, he had a battle to fight.

An hour later, all the CIS warships were floating hulks in space. So were the hundred ships he had lost in the engagement. He ordered the rest of the fleet to form up, and recalled the fifty ships that had remained behind. "Cortana, have you detected anything that might be related to the Brutes? We came here to find them, not get into a war, as enjoyable as that last battle was."

Cortana activated the long range detection software. The detection programs were improved vastly when they had found Forerunner artefacts related to the field. It showed how advanced the Forerunners really were, and Cortana now understood why the Covenant revered them so much. There. She found readings similar to a plasma torpedo discharge, as well as particles produced by Covenant engines that were not in this area. However, many ships were damaged. _It would be better to stay here and repair them first_, thought Cortana.

"Arbiter," she began. "I have located where I think the Brute fleet is positioned. But, under the circumstances, we should be concerned with the repairs to our fleet. It would not be wise to attack the Brute fleet with half of our ships damaged, as well as having only half the fleet. We could destroy them, but not with damaged ships. I suggest that we wait until every ship is reporting that it is one hundred percent functional."

It was true, the Arbiter knew that. Normally he would attack, but they couldn't miss the opportunity just because they had not taken the time to repair. "Very well then, Cortana. Order all ships to begin repairs, and begin salvage operations, from our vessels, not the CIS ships."

* * *

Meanwhile, far away on Coruscant, a Bothan spy ran through the halls of the new Fleet Command Centre. He knew about the destruction of Yavin 4, and so did many others. After the destruction of Yavin 4, an Alliance fleet was sent to deal with what ever had destroyed it. Everyone thought it was the CIS, however, when the fleet got there, there were CIS ships alright. Destroyed CIS ships. In orbit of the glassy moon was two hundred odd looking ships. The enemy fleet fired without hesitation, and in the confusion, no one noticed that he had snuck into an enemy ship, and retrieved information about them. Not much, but hopefully enough for the commanders. 

The Bothan skidded into a room, and snapped of a salute. "Sir!" he addressed the Supreme Commander, Gilad Pellaeon. Pellaeon gestured to the Bothan to lower his arm. "Yes, what is it?" asked the Commander.

"I have found information about these new attackers at Yavin 4."

The Supreme Commander suddenly looked interested after hearing that. "Show me." Ordered the Commander. Wordlessly, the Bothan handed the report he held to Pellaeon. The report had details on the technology, and just a little about the ground forces the Covenant, as they called them selves, employed. The Covenant employed Brutes as the main soldiers, as well as Jackals and Drones.

As for amour and turrets, all Covenant vehicles use anti gravity propulsion. All weapons they use fire plasma, and the names of the turrets and vehicles were there.

The Commander studied the report for a long time, before finally handing it back to the Bothan. "Excellent work, now give that report to all the Generals and other Commanders. Everyone needs to know about this threat, so hurry!"

The Bothan took off at a run, and hurried to meet everyone else.

* * *

On another side of the galaxy, the CIS Council sat and reviewed the latest defeat and victory. They were in the process of taking Kamino, the Empire's main source of clones for their Stormtroopers. However, the biggest lost was the CIS fleet tasked with attacking Mon Calamari. The entire three hundred ship fleet was lost to one hundred and fifty alien ships. Everyone continued to read the reports, and everyone knew that the war was going very well for them.

* * *

Meanwhile, on Kamino… 

"Cover that doorway!" yelled the Alliance officer. Blaster fire flew in every direction, and the commanding officer wondered how the situation got this bad. They were tasked with defending Kamino and its precious cloning facilities that the Empire needed to supply Stormtroopers to the Alliance military. The CIS had attacked, and they had landed Battle Droids as well as Super Battle Droids in the hundreds. Droidekas were rolling, deploying and gunning down the troops with ease.

Strike Force Ten was the group of Imperial Stormtroopers and Alliance Troopers designated with the job of guarding a vital chokepoint from CIS forces. One Trooper, Dac Sunder fired at the tide of metal he was facing. The droids dropped easily, though there were many more to take its place. Next to him, a Stormtrooper, TX-224, lobbed a thermal detonator into the midst of the droids. The explosion took out half the droids. Luckily, the droids could only come through at them from one direction; all the other entryways were blocked off and barricaded.

Sunder felt his back grow hot, and then an explosion hurled him to the ground. Everyone else turned around to see that the droids had blown through the east barricade with an explosive charge. Droids swarmed in and gunned down half the team before blaster rifles could be brought to bear. Sunder threw a thermal detonator, watched it explode, and suddenly, a blaster bolt hit him on the back. He died with the image of droids exploding.

* * *

Hours later, Kamino had fallen. The droids destroyed all resistance, and all the clones being bred. The facility, however, was not destroyed. The CIS would use it to clone more troopers for their army. They just had to find the right person. It was only time.

* * *

On the watery world of Dac, the Brutes had taken hold of the world, and the word spread to Command and Control Centre on Coruscant. A large force was assembled to meet and take back the planet of Dac from the Brutes. A total of one hundred Star Destroyers, seventy Mon Calamari Star Cruisers and thirty other ships, two hundred in total were ready to jump into hyperspace. The Captain of the Fleet was Captain Chad Piett. "Everyone, on my mark, activate the hyperspace generators and make the jump in to hyperspace. Three, two, one, mark!" 

At that time, all the ships in the fleet made the jump to hyperspace, leaving nothing behind to suggest that there was a fleet of two hundred ships there as moment ago.

* * *

On the world of Dac, the Brutes were setting up a camp in one of the main cities. The whole city was reinforced with anti-air turrets, and it was surrounded by a cliff that was too high to climb on three sides. The fourth side was a beach, but there was a path to climb up and to reach the city. That was why many Shade plasma turrets were set up, as well as the smaller, more portable plasma turrets. 

In orbit around the planet, the reduced Brute fleet was there. It had encountered and destroyed a CIS patrol, at the cost of thirty ships. The lead ship, an Assault Carrier, the Brute captain sat and watched the display. Why they couldn't glass the planet right here and right now mystified him. Still, he didn't dare question the Prophet, as the Prophet must have something in mind for the planet.

The Brute's thoughts were interrupted by an insistent beeping from one of the consoles. "What is that noise?" he demanded to know.

One of the Brutes at the consoles answered "The scanners have found a disturbance," he then glanced at the console again "Two hundred ships are heading for us." Said the Brute.

The Brute captain contemplated the new predicament they were in. The fleet wasn't at its best, and the Fleet of Retribution could arrive anytime. The captain decided on one thing; let them come to him, and then attack or defend with everything he had. Yes, that was it. It was the decision that could let him win. "Tell the troops on the ground that the enemy is coming. We will defend this place to the last Brute, Jackal or Drone!"

* * *

The fleet commanded by Captain Piett emerged from hyperspace about three hundred thousand kilometres from the Brute fleet. Almost instantly the Brute fleet fired their plasma torpedos at the Alliance fleet. _They were expecting us_, thought Captain Piett. "All ships, break and attack the enemy! Spread out now! Navigation, full power to engines, and weapons, Warm up the turbolaser batteries." 

The Alliance fleet moved out, and the ships carrying fighters launched them to compete against the Brute controlled Seraphs. The _Vengeance_ was in the middle of the battle, firing turbolasers and proton torpedos at the Brute ship. The battle was much harder for many of the Alliance ship captains, as the Brute ships were shielded more heavily, and had different weapons. The tracking plasma torpedos was difficult to evade for some of the larger ships, but eventually, five GR-75 medium transports made it through the battle, and plunged down into the atmosphere.

Once in the atmosphere, the transports came under heavy AA fire from the Covenant plasma AA. One of the transports exploded under such fire, as their shields were weakened during the dive into the atmosphere. Once they were ready, they powered down and landed in the water, facing the Covenant controlled city. The main cargo bays opened, and from each transport five Amphibions were dropped into the sea. Each one carried twenty troops, so four hundred soldiers were going to make a landing on the beach, and liberate the city.

The Amphibions carried mixed personnel, as some carried Sea Commandos, and some carried Imperial Seatroopers. Others carried both Sea Commandos and Seatroopers. The Amphibions moved forward, slowly at first, and then picking up speed. On the beach, the Shades mounted by the Brutes saw the Amphibions coming towards them. The Brute commander saw them and then promptly barked an order for all the turrets to fire.

On board the Amphibions, the troopers saw the plasma heading towards them. "Keep your heads down, people, or stick them up if you want to lose them!" shouted the commander. The plasma that hit the water threw up steam, and the bolts that missed flew overhead and warmed up the air. One of the Amphibions was struck with multiple plasma bolts, and eventually, the armour melted and the water poured in.

The Amphibion sunk moments later, sending the crew and passengers to a watery grave.

Plasma bolts continued to pound the area around the Amphibions, and sometimes, they were hit and sank, sometimes they were hit, but nothing more than a gash was made. When they were closer, the smaller, more portable plasma turrets opened up. While not as powerful as the Shades, they more than made up for it with their higher rate of fire. Holes were punched into the Amphibions, and a few more sunk beneath the waves.

* * *

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity for the troops, the Amphibions made it to shore. Almost immediately after landing, Covenant artillery shelled the shore where they landed. The plasma mortars blew holes into the ground as well as the landed assault force. Many of the troops took shelter under the large rocks that were strewn around the beach, which barely held off the barrage of plasma mortars. Luckily for the ground troops, the Brutes weren't known for their intelligence, or even accuracy for that matter. Many of the mortars were off, and merely turned the ground into glassy craters. The bombardment lasted for a long time, and many troopers were hit. 

Commander Corr looked up in frustration. They were pinned down, and the remainder of the taskforce, about two hundred and ninety seven men, were getting nowhere. The Wraiths were still there, hurling mortar after mortar at them. The commander keyed his com link with the taskforce in orbit. "_Vengeance_, this is the commander of taskforce seventy nine. Our original commander was hit as soon as we landed on the beach. We are pinned down at the beach, with two hundred and ninety seven men, and we have about a dozen tanks up on the cliffs firing mortars at us. We need some air support now!" yelled the commander.

The com link answered back. "Commander, this is Captain Piett of the Vengeance. We have received, and two Y-wings are en route. Sit tight, and enjoy the fireworks." The link faded out.

Moments later, the link came back on again. "This is Captain Kenai of Y-wing Y-56. We have a visual on the target now. We spotted hostile AA so we might not be here much longer. We are thirty seconds away from targets. You might want to watch your head for flying shrapnel!"

Corr heard the approach of the Y-wings, and then turned around to look. The Y-wings roared overhead, and then unloaded their deadly payload onto the tanks that were pinning them down earlier. After, the Y-wings moved to fire proton torpedos at the remaining tanks. Four proton torpedos left each Y-wing, and the remaining tanks turned into a burning hulk that spewed forth pieces of metal. The Y-wings executed a sharp bank, and accelerated forward into the sky, heading for the battle above.

Corr watched them with a grin. "Come on, you maggots!" he shouted "Haven't you seen a Y-wing before? Move it people, we still have a whole city to take! Last person to get up the slope will be the distraction for the plasma turrets!"

The assault force needed no more encouragement as they all scrambled up and ran up the slope, as well as taking cover to avoid the blasts from the plasma turrets and Shades. Corr smiled again. It was step one of the liberation. All they had to do was survive the treacherous journey up the beachside slope, and there would be the city. They had the advantage of knowledge. However, as it turned out, things would not be quite as easy as Corr would have hoped.

* * *

(A.N: Phew, this is one of the longest chapters I have ever wrote. Just a note, this chapter used to be part of another 2000 words, but I thought that it would be to long to read as a whole document.Also, I apologize about the constant switching of POVs.Anyway, I hope you enjoy! The real action comes next chapter (Which is already half finished). Read and Reivew please! 


	5. Liberation of Dac, Pt2

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Hello again, everyone. Sorry about the extremely long wait, school started before I could finish this chapter. Also, a major case of writer's block struck. If you read the last chapter's Authors Note, then you would have known that these two chapters used to be a single document. Also, since school started, be prepared for long waits after each chapter. Well, enough ranting and let's get on the show! Err, story.)

Star wars 2136: Yeah, that chapter took a bit of a long time even if you ask me. Hope this one is faster! Keep reviewing for more chapters!

brian: Thanks for the words, and yes, I do wonder, what would happen? Hehehe. And unless you're saying that I can give Cortana a body, maybe not. Maybe, but it will still take a lot of time for me to think about it.

Anime-Drugee: Yeah, I did forget about Ion Cannons, but they will come in soon. Humans vs. Covenant? Maybe not. I've read too many of those, and I need something different. Anyway, I don't think the Alliance would allow the Empire to build another Death Star. See you soon!

Shadow Gravemind: Yep, the Alliance soldiers are definitely in trouble. Keep reviewing!

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars, or anything related or to do with Star Wars. I do not own Halo, or anything to do with it.

Chapter 5: The Liberation of Dac, Pt.2

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Up in orbit around the planet, a scene not so different from the scene on the ground a few minutes ago was happening. Many ships were locked together in a battle for supremacy over the planet. The Alliance wanted to free it; the Brutes, to control it. Both sides had ships of every size and shape battling it out a wild match for control. Things went from bad to worse when a fleet of CIS ships arrived to also control the planet. Every side had casualties, and the amount of space hulks was rapidly increasing.

On the bridge of the _Vengeance_, Captain Piett looked at the sight with a grim expression. The CIS fleet was very quickly wiped out, and now the main concern was the Brutes. The Brutes were dumb, as many like him had figured in a relatively short order. They lacked the knowledge necessary for controlling the ships, and they didn't use any fancy manoeuvres or tactics. However, the ships they had were powerful, but not used correctly, which was the reason why Piett suspected that they had lasted this long against them.

"Have all turbolaser batteries target the Covenant frigate over there engaging the _Crusader_. As soon as their shields are down, fire all forward proton torpedo tubes," he ordered. The officers and gunnery crew did exactly as they were told, and the Covenant frigate was destroyed very quickly. The whole of the bridge crew cheered. That Covenant ship was the _Vengeance_'s fourth kill, and morale was overall, quite high on the bridge. The Vengeance continued to move to provide a harder target to hit, and also to be able to evade a plasma torpedo hit, which could disable the shields. The turbolaser batteries continued to spew turbolasers at the Covenant ships, occasionally scoring a kill.

"Sir, Green Leader from the _Justice_ reports that his squadron dock. They need repairs and resupply." Reported the communications officer.

"Very well, officer. Grant them access to hangar four, and have a repair crew ready to meet them." Replied the captain. The officer reported the details to the leader, and Piett could see a group of four X-wings flying towards the designated hangar. After the X-wings landed, Piett continued to watch the battle, with growing concern. More ships were lost, and he hoped that there would be reinforcements ready in time when he would send he request.

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After repairing all the ships, the Arbiter watched the scans being run across the navigation console. The Elite was also watching the information carefully, even though there was no need to. Cortana was also sifting through the information, looking for any readings that showed up as a Brute controlled ship. Cortana watched the information far more carefully than anyone else could do, and knew that if she could, she would have sighed in frustration. They had been scanning for almost an hour, and still nothing had come up. The bridge doors hissed open, and an Elite walked in.

The Arbiter nodded at the new arrival, and the Elite proceeded to walk towards the navigation console, and once their, he tapped the other Elite on the shoulder. The Elite nodded gratefully, and let the other Elite take over as a replacement. Cortana watched the whole thing through the cameras mounted on the walls of the bridge. That was the third replacement they had, and Cortana knew that they would have to find something soon.

The Arbiter was startled a bit when Cortana's holographic form appeared on the holopedestal. Her voice held a bit of excitement in them. "Arbiter, I have finally found a location where the Brutes are! I have transmitted the co-ordinates to the other ships, and I have sent them to the navigation console. Everything is ready, and we are waiting for your command."

The Arbiter stepped forward to address the captains of the fleet. He only spoke a few words, and then, as one, the entire fleet jumped into the alternate realm of Slipspace.

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As Corr and his assault force moved up the slope, the taskforce was met with increasing tough resistance. The Brutes were tough enough, taking almost fifty bolts from a blaster just to kill. Thermal Detonators made things a bit easier, but a trooper carried a limited amount, and there was still a whole city to take. The weapons the Brutes used were strange, as they fired plasma that burned holes in armour and skin alike, and the grenades were sticky-luckily the Brutes couldn't throw it well with enough accuracy, or else the taskforce would have suffered a great deal more casualties than they had right now. A pair of TIE Interceptors screamed out of the clouds and strafed the city walls with laser cannons. Then the TIEs blasted the slope that the taskforce was heading up as well, making things a lot easier for them.

Corr waved his troops forward as the line of Jackals that had stubbornly refused to move finally broke after the Interceptors had killed off most of the Brutes in the area. The assault force moved forward, taking cover when the portable plasma cannon above them fired in a surprise attack. Three Sea Commandos were cut down before a Seatrooper wielding a MiniMag PTL missile launcher blew the cannon and the Brute operating it to hell. After that little distraction, the assault force continued to scramble up the slope, also hoping that the latest weather broadcast: heavy hails of plasma grenades, would not be true.

The assault force had finally reached the city walls, and they saw the damage the TIE Interceptors had done. Bodies lay all over the place, and in all various postures of death. There was also a helpful hole or two blown in the wall, courtesy of a few Concussion Missiles. The Shades which would have torn apart the assault force had they reached the top while the cannons were manned lay wrecked and their operators flung to the ground. Corr judged the walls and came to the decision that they could be a chokepoint if they were to enter them.

Corr decided that they would enter through the holes, as well as scaling the wall, and climbing over. He told the other Captains and Sergeants, and they all agreed to the plan. The troops took their position, even though it was a bit cramped with two hundred and forty eight troops crowding around the walls and near the holes. When Corr spoke, it was a single word: "Now!"

At that word, the troops threw hooks with their ends attached to a strong wire, started to scale the walls and also started to climb through the holes. The Brutes were taken by surprise when the troops started appear through the holes and on top of the walls. The soldiers that were waiting to climb through threw Thermal Detonators over the top of the walls, and the explosions caused more confusion and disarray through the Brute ranks. As soon as they were over or through, the Commandos fired at the Brutes and held them off from advancing. Once all the troopers were through all they spread out through the city, fighting the Brutes and Jackals that were also spread out through the entire city. Many times a group of Commandos or Seatroopers would be ambushed, and then wiped out. Occasionally, a group would survive. As the brutal urban combat continued, the battle in space also continued. However, the Alliance would soon receive help in an unexpected way.

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Piett hit the floor hard when the _Vengeance_ shook from a turbolaser barrage fired by _Munificent_-class frigate. He cursed. The situation was getting worse with every second that passed. The fleet was now only consisted of about seventy four ships, and very few _Imperial_-class Star Destroyers were left. The Mon Calamari Star Cruisers weren't much better off, with a good amount of them destroyed. "St-status report, now!" he ordered shakily. He wiped off a trickle of blood that came from a cut when he fell with his sleeve. The officer didn't hesitate. "Severe damage across the ship! Hull breaches in section four, eight and nine! Sealing pressure bulkheads in the affected areas. Many personnel are dead, many more wounded. The medical bays are full. The medical personnel are requesting more hands to help, as well as more supplies."

Piett cursed. Things were really bad now. "How many proton torpedos are left?" he asked.

The weapons officer answered after a moment. "None sir. The turbolaser batteries are also beginning to overheat, and battery four and seven has been destroyed when the cooling mechanism overloaded." Piett cursed again. Things were about to get worse, however, when his navigation officer reported.

"Sir, the long range sensors report that a large force of ships are heading this way. The profiles match the Covenant ships, as well as some from unknown origins."

"How many ships are there?" asked Piett, dreading the answer.

"Approximately two hundred ships, sir" the navigation officer answered.

Piett sighed. It was over. The remainders of the Alliance fleet couldn't hold off another two hundred ships. They might as well give up. The hole in real space opened and out slipped two hundred ships. It was the ship in the lead that froze Piett to the spot. It was larger than a Super Star Destroyer. The strangest thing was that the Covenant ships that had just arrived fired on the other Brute fleet. The sight confused Piett. Why was the Covenant firing on themselves, when the Covenant was fighting the Alliance? Still, the opportunity gave the turbolaser batteries a chance to cool down.

Very soon, the new Covenant fleet had destroyed the other fleet. However, some of the ships at the edges of the fleet managed to escape into Slipspace while the other fleet was distracted with the ships at the front of the formation. After the destruction of most of the Brute fleet, the enormous ship turned to face the Alliance fleet. Or what's left of it anyway. The ship must have cooled down its weapons, but Piett was still worried. The ship had a weapon of some sorts slung underneath it. The gun was half the size of the ship itself, but that was still extremely large. The navigation officer shook him from his thoughts. "Sir, the ship is hailing us. Should we answer?"

Piett thought about it for a while before answering. "Yes, answer it. Put it on the main channel."

"Yes, sir. Putting it online now, sir." The main view screen turned on to reveal an alien wearing ceremonial armour, as well as the most distinguishing feature: the alien had four mandibles in the place of a mouth. The alien spoke. "Unknown fleet, this is the Arbiter of the New Covenant and officer in charge of the Fleet of Retribution. We have come to destroy the Brutes, and there are Brute forces on the ground. If you wish, we will assist you."

Piett looked doubtful, but help was rare around the galaxy. The Alliance fleet was stretched thin, and any help would be needed. He had some questions that needed to be answered first, though. He straightened himself. "This is Captain Piett of the Star Destroyer _Vengeance_, if I may ask, why did you fire on your own fleet?"

The Arbiter paused for a moment, and then answered. "We did not fire on our own fleet. We fired on the Brute fleet, as they are the reason why we are here. The Brutes are dumb, mindless pawns of the Prophets, who live for the reason of manipulating other beings to do their bidding. That is the reason why we are after them. They wish to unleash destruction upon the galaxy for the reason of being the only race. That is why. That is all."

Piett took the time to ponder this information. "Alright, we believe you. Our ground troops need help. A lot of it. I'm sending you their co-ordinates now." The Arbiter didn't reply. He merely nodded and then the screen turned off.

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Onboard the _Divine Blade_, the Arbiter gave the co-ordinates of the city to all the Elites, Humans, Hunters and Grunts that would participate. The Arbiter then opened a link to Zuka 'Zamamee, the Special Operations Commander. "'Zamamee, take a group of SpecOps Elites and Grunts, as well as three Demons, and use the Stealth Phantom to get in behind the bulk of the Brute forces. Distract them, and then attack them if possible."

The face of 'Zamamee smiled. "Alright. It will be done."

"Good," replied the Arbiter. "You will leave the ship in ten. Arm yourself with whatever you want, and then proceed to the launch bay. A lot of this operation depends on you and your team, 'Zamamee. Arbiter out."

After the Arbiter had switched off the link, 'Zamamee turned on another link. "SpecOps team four, meet me at the armoury. Spartans 117, 058 and 104 meet at the armoury as well." And with that, 'Zamamee switched off the com link. 'Zamamee then proceeded to walk towards the armoury as well, with his gleaming white armour on. Though most of the Covenant stilled called the Spartans 'Demons', 'Zamamee called them by their number, as well as their name. He occasionally called them demons as well, especially if they annoy him. He had learned their names from the Arbiter, who in turn learned it from Dr. Halsey. However, he recognized them by their weapon load outs.

Soon, 'Zamamee reached the main armoury of the _Divine Blade_. The armoury was a large room, and there were weapon racks along every wall. The weapon racks reached to about halfway to the ceiling. Every centimetre of the racks was used to store weapons and ammunition was kept in lockers, and storage cabinets. The armoury held every weapon created by both the humans and the Covenant was stored here. Human weapons ranged from the M6C Magnum Pistol, to rocket launchers, to portable machine guns. Every Covenant weapon as well, from Plasma Pistols, to Carbines and to portable plasma cannons.

Right now, what held 'Zamamee's attention was the group of beings standing in the armoury. There were fifteen of them, and all seemed to be interested in the weapons. Each one, however, turned and acknowledged him when he walked in. They all knew what they were going to do, so there was no point in addressing them. Instead, he ordered them to load up on ordnance, since they would not be back here until the Brutes were wiped out.

'Zamamee picked up a Carbine, and for a side arm, twin Plasma Rifles. When the Plasma Rifles were secure on the magnetic lock on his armour, he picked up the hilt of an Energy Sword. It would be most useful against the Brutes. After, he armed himself with four plasma grenades to deal with especially annoying Brutes or any plasma cannons they might meet. Seeing as his arsenal was done, he settled back to watch the others in the armoury, choosing their choice of weapons. Spartan 117, or Master Chief, armed himself with a Battle Rifle with what looked like a grenade launcher slung underneath the barrel. In reality, it was a plasma weapon, acting like a plasma rifle.

Spartan 104, otherwise known as Fred, had chosen a Shotgun, and a Battle Rifle. Spartan 058, whose name was Linda, had a Sniper Rifle, and a portable 30 cal. Machine gun. 'Zamamee was happy with his decision on which Spartans would follow, and he was glad that they could come with his squad. It would make things a lot easier when dealing with the Brutes.

SpecOps Team Four was one of the most elite special operations teams in SpecOps history. First assembled when the Human-Covenant war began, they had performed many secretive operations under night and under Active Camouflage. The team was made up of eleven members, seven Elites and four Grunts. Every one of them wore the black armour that signified their rank, and every Elite had a hilt of an Energy Sword strapped to their armour. Their leader was the Elite named Tova 'Vortamee, though 'Zamamee was taking charge of the group for this operation.

Once all the members of 'Zamamee's entourage were ready and armed, he ushered them out of the armoury and into the launch bay, which wasn't very far away. On their way their, they passed many Marines, Elites, and other combatants lining up to board the dropships and to be taken down to the surface for the one thing they did best: kick some Brute ass.

When the team reached their designated launch bay, they found the Stealth Phantom already there and waiting. There were hardly any recognizable differences from a standard Phantom to this Stealth Phantom, but the main difference was that it had a coating of silver, instead of purple. Also, multiple stealth and Active Camouflage units were mounted on the main body, as well as jamming devices. This made it virtually undetectable, although it still could barely be seen by the naked eye, although it was extremely hard.

'Zamamee stood at the bottom of the magnificent craft, and waved his team into the Phantom. Once they were all inside, 'Zamamee took one last look around before stepping into the miniature gravity lift and then lifted into the interior of the ship. Once inside, 'Zamamee took his place at the front of the Phantom, and stood on one of the glowing rings positioned there.

A Phantom dropship has no seats, but the occupants stand on the glowing rings situated around the ship, and their weight is supported by the miniature gravity manipulation device within the ring. The device erased most of the gravity, allowing for the occupant to stand with their feet on the floor, with the device supporting their weight. The device can be disengaged at anytime by simply stepping off the ring.

None of that was on 'Zamamee's mind, however, when he stepped onto the ring. What he was thinking about was unknown to the rest of the group. It was a good thing too, because he seriously doubted his and their abilities. Although he had fought hundreds of Brutes before, him and team four had never worked with Spartans; he only chose them because he would need the Spartans help. Only the Spartan named Linda had experience with Team 4. She had worked with and shared a friendly rivalry with Team 4's sniper, Neto 'Novamee. He then shook the thoughts out of his head. Whether they would work together or not, their assigned mission would not be a failure. He would make sure of that.

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Soon after settling in, 'Zamamee set his helmet com link to receive anything that was said by the pilot and any orders issued from the _Divine Blade_, which acted as a mobile command centre. He heard the pilot over the link. "Phantom 34 requesting launch from bay 3."

The voice over the other end of the link answered, "Launch request approved, Phantom 3. Hold position for a moment until Seraph wing 7 is ready to fly cover down to the surface. Good luck." The other voice at the end of the link closed the link. Soon, another voice belonging to the lead pilot of Seraph Wing 7 came in. "Phantom 34, Seraph Wing 7 is in position. There are only four of us as the others are out there."

The pilot's voice came over again. "Affirmative, lead. Launching from bay 3 now."

The whole Phantom shook as the engines on the Phantom lifted it a few feet into the air, and then fired up again as the engines propelled the Phantom out of the launch bay and into the inky blackness of space.

Inside the Phantom, everyone was fairly nervous; even the Spartans, as the Brutes had killed Spartans in surprise attacks with Brute Shots, so not even the Spartans were invincible. The main view screen on the Phantom came to life as the screen showed Cortana's holographic face. "Your objectives have been updated," she told them "There are several anti aircraft guns that need to be neutralized, or they will pick off the majority of the incoming dropships one by one. A few would make it, but a lot more would if the AA is destroyed. Your own dropship should be relatively safe, as their systems most likely can't find you. All the other dropships will be leaving in one hour. Do your best. Good luck, Cortana out."

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On the ground, Corr fired at the group of Brutes up ahead on the street. His original squad of ten men had been reduced to no more than five. Every one of them had used up all their thermal detonators, which were the most effective weapon against the Brutes, as a blaster on a standard power setting took a quarter of a power cell (approximately fifty bolts), but on the highest setting it took about twenty five shots, but that was using up half the power cell.

Corr fired another barrage of blaster fire down the road, succeeding in doing nothing except pissing the Brute he hit off. Then he heard the distinctive sound of a Brute Shot being fired, and ducked, and the grenade exploded behind him, the few pieces of shrapnel bouncing off the armour he wore. Taking careful aim this time, he fired four bolts at the nearest Brute's head, the first two knocking of the makeshift helmet, the other two penetrating the Brute's thick skull, killing it.

In return, another wave of plasma fire came down from the Brute lines, almost hitting Corr, and some of his soldiers. Corr heard much of the chatter on his com link, and most of it was bad. Nearly every squad was having trouble with the Brutes, especially Brutes that were reinforced with Jackal snipers. Corr fired another bolt down the street, and was surprised when he heard a Brute scream out in pain. Still, it was going to be a long day.

The Phantom dove through the clouds at extremely high speeds. The Phantom was glowing red, having just broken through the atmosphere. Eventually it straightened up, and was flying just a few scant metres above the ocean, well below the firing line of the anti-aircraft guns. 'Zamamee stepped out of the gravity 'seat' and stepped into the cockpit of the Phantom. He watched as the pilot skilfully manoeuvred the Phantom to the cliffs, and pulling up at the last minute, sending the Phantom flying up the cliff.

After the Phantom had completed its ascension, it flew towards the city, which was only a few kilometres away. The pilot made sure that the Phantom was flying fast to make sure that the AA guns couldn't get a lock on them. Once above the city, the Phantom just skimmed the rooftops so that the AA couldn't fire at them, even though the computers couldn't lock on to them. It was better safe than sorry. Once over the city, angry Brutes fired at the Phantom, with no success. 'Zamamee tapped the pilot on the shoulder. "See that building?" he pointed out. "Stop over there." The pilot did as he directed, and hovered over a fairly tall building. 'Zamamee went back to the passenger compartment. "Spartan 058, 'Novamee, this is your stop." Both of them looked at each other, in confusion, and then shrugged. They both then stepped into the gravity lift, and were immediately transported down onto the roof of the building below. The Phantom then continued on its course, to the centre of the city.

On the building, Linda and 'Novamee set up their snipers on the ledge, since Linda's modified sniper had a removable bipod. 'Novamee acted as her spotter, though he took an occasional shot with his Particle Beam rifle as well. 'Novamee suddenly saw a Brute manning a plasma cannon who was blasting the incoming Pelicans and Phantoms, and took his chance. He fired a single shot, and the beam embedded itself in the Brute's head. Unfortunately it was also the same Brute that Linda was aiming for. "Hey, that was mine!" Linda sarcastically complained.

"Too late now to complain about it; he's dead." 'Novamee retorted. Linda then shifted her aim to another Brute, with 'Novamee as spotter again. "Brute Captain on the right," announced 'Novamee. Linda fired a single shot, and the bullet punctured the Brute's head. "Brute with a Brute Shot, on your right." Said 'Novamee. The cycle of 'Novamee finding an enemy, and either telling its location to Linda, or shooting it dead himself went on for sometime, though Linda half the time located targets herself.

Suddenly, 'Novamee noticed a group of soldiers that he did not recognize fighting a group of Brutes. He tapped Linda on the shoulder, and pointed them out to her. Linda shifted her aim to one of the combatants competing in the battle, lined his head up with the crosshairs, held her breath to stabilize it, and rested one armoured finger on the trigger. Right that moment, Linda was God.

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A.N: Ohh, a cliff hanger (Sort of)! Don't you just love cliff hangers? Well, anyway, sorry about that extremely long wait, I had for the first time in my life hit a writer's block! That, and I was playing Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter. Also, the dreaded homework and assignments were on me by the truckload. So, not much could be done. Well, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and don't forget to review! See you next chapter!


	6. Liberation of Dac, Pt3

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Hi, it's me again! Aren't you all glad to see me once again? Well, after all that, sorry for the long wait again, assignments have plagued me again! That, and as I said last time, I was playing Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter. And now, I present, with great pride mind you, Part Three of the Liberation of Dac! Now this is the final chapter for the liberation. Also, after this, I will resume work on a new fanfic, and that is after another chapter updated for my A Day in the Life of…, piece. Well, that's enough rambling from me; see you at the bottom of this chapter!)

Reviews:

Star wars 2136: Well, they will finish liberating it this chapter. Advanced Warfighter is great! Well, at least on the 360. Kind of hard to get used to, since it is very different from my other standard games. Keep reviewing please!

brian: Heh heh heh, I'm evil, aren't I? Well, the cliffhanger's over for you now! You keep reviewing to!

The one called Sugar: I'll try to get this done as soon as possible. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Comrade Baron: Thanks for the helpful tips. Your advice will hopeful, be integrated into the following chapters, though this may not be possible at all times. And also, I change viewpoints a lot in order to give readers a bigger view of the action, instead of being confined to one point of view at all times. Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

brian (Again!): No problems, no hard feelings (Secretly arms a nuke), right?

Sir Loin the First: Names may be personal. But, they can be the basis of trust as well. If the Chief tells them, then both sides are confident in their trust of each other. But thanks for the review!

Chapter 6: The Liberation of Dac, Pt.3

* * *

As Linda steadied her aim, her thoughts drifted to the battle scene in front of her. It was strange to see a Brute fighting another army. She shook off the thoughts, and then fired. The loud _crack_ of the rifles was followed by the _thud_ of the Brute falling to the ground, a hole on the side of its head. All the Brutes recognized the sound as a human weapon, and they turned to the direction of where the shot came from.

Upon facing the direction, they saw a golden visor, which they identified as belonging to a demon. Snarling, they turned their weapons in the demon's direction, and started shooting. Linda cursed when she and 'Novamee were forced to duck their heads behind the wall to avoid being hit. "That went well," commented 'Novamee lightly. Linda didn't bother replying. Instead, she raised the sniper rifle above the wall, and used the smart-linked scope to fire at the Brutes. _Crack_, _crack_, _crack_. After the third bullet was flying down towards a Brute, the magazine automatically fell out, as part of a modification made by Linda to her beloved sniper. 'Novamee peeked out to see that only two Brutes were dead, after three shots.

"Well, you got two out of three, Linda. That's an A, but someone with your reputation should have gotten three out of three, so that will bring you down to a B." remarked 'Novamee.

"Shut up." Said Linda in return. She reached into one of the armour's many ammunition pockets, and fished around until she found what she was looking for. She pulled out a single bullet.

'Novamee looked at her when she pulled out a single bullet. His lower mandibles opened slightly in an expression of surprise, as well as in disbelief. "One bullet?" he asked. "What in the name of the gods is one bullet going to do?" he asked. Had her helmet not been on, Linda would have stuck her tongue out at him.

"This one bullet, for your information Mr. Shock and Disbelief, is a 15.58x102mm HE round. It packs enough explosive to blow a Ghost to Timbuktu in one shot. Timbuktu is a city on Earth, by the way," she said after his confused look. Linda loaded the bullet into the receiver, and the display on her HUD showed that it was loaded. The part of the HUD that normally showed how many bullets were left in a magazine showed one bullet, but highlighted in red instead of the usual blue. Linda raised the rifle above her head again, and pulled the trigger. The round shot out with a much louder _crack_ than normal, and when it hit one of the Brute's, it almost tore the Brute in half.

Linda smiled, and next to her, 'Novamee lobbed three plasma grenades into the remaining Brutes. He heard howling, and then, seconds later, three consecutive and loud detonations. Then, he heard some unfamiliar weapons shooting, and guessed it was the soldiers who he and Linda had saved. He peeped over the top of the wall they were ducking behind, and saw no more Brutes there that were still alive. He nodded to Linda, and they continued their assigned job, which was to provide sniper cover when needed, and generally shoot anything still standing after the main forces have pushed through.

* * *

Down on the street below, Corr pulled another wounded Commando into the alley. He had no idea what was happening, instead, right now, his mind was fixed on getting the wounded in his squad to cover inside the alley. What he did know was that something, he didn't know what, had caught the Brute's attention, and someone had won, though he had no idea who.

After dragging the Commando into the alley, he kneeled next to the Commando, and pulled out his medical kit. He applied bacta to the more serious wounds, and bandaged up the rest. After that, he observed the rest of the squad carry in the wounded. They had paid dearly for the battle. Out of about thirty men, thirteen were dead, and seven were wounded, leaving only ten men capable of fighting effectively. As he thought about how they were going to liberate the rest of the city with what was remaining of the assault force, curiosity got the better of him, causing him to peek out of the alley, and to scan the rooftops to see if he could see their mysterious saviours.

It was hard to see anything because of the position of the sun, which was facing him, making finding the person a good deal harder. In order to see anything, he had to squint, which started hurting his eyes after a while. Finally, he glimpsed something that was reflecting the sunlight, kind of like a polished blaster. To help him identify the glimmer, he brought his rifle up, and peered through the scope. The first thing he saw was the upper torso part of a green battle suit. Then, the helmet turned to face him, and he found himself staring at an opaque, reflective golden visor. The sight of the visor somehow scared him more than a Brute did. The visor lingered on him for a moment, and then swivelled to look back at what it was doing, after he had lowered his blaster rifle. He made a mental note to remember this location, as the person up there could either be hostile, or it could be friendly. Both way, he had no way to find out, and he didn't want to find out anyway.

* * *

Linda looked was looking through the scope to find more targets to shoot when she felt like something was staring at her. She tore her eyes away from the scope, and looked to her right. There, poking his head out was one of the soldiers, who was looking through the scope mounted on his weapon at her. She regarded him for a moment, and then ignored him when he lowered his weapon. The team was moving towards the AA Guns in hopes of at least disrupting the overlapping blanket of plasma AA before the dropships arrive.

They had about one and a half hours before the dropships would be launching. The best way for them to inflict maximum damage without blowing every single gun to hell would be to find the guns that were essential to the overlapping AA fire. The team had decided to split up, with one Spartan on each group. The teams were designated Alpha, Bravo and Linda and 'Novamee would form Charlie. She and 'Novamee would provide sniper cover when needed, and right now, Alpha needed some help. She turned her sniper rifle towards the direction, as did 'Novamee, and took aim.

* * *

The Master Chief fired his Battle Rifle at the Brutes that were dug in on the street ahead. It was no use. The three round bursts were great for shooting at targets further away, but they lacked the rate of fire needed to inflict more damage in a shorter time at close range. They also weren't very good at suppressing targets.

With a sigh of frustration, the Chief changed the fire mode to automatic. It was a new development for the rifles, so they could now be more effective at close ranges, or suppressing the enemy. He sprayed the rifle down at the Brutes, hoping that they would break soon. It did little except to attract a lot of plasma fire down his direction, which was in an alleyway. Moving down the alley was little use, due to a Plasma Cannon down the main alley street.

So here they were, pinned down at an alley, with time running out. Seeing no other alternative, he radioed Charlie Team. "Charlie, this is Alpha. We need a lot of sniper fire down here, and I mean now!" The radio remained silent for a while, and finally crackled into life.

"Sorry about the wait, Alpha. Had a little trouble with some Brutes. Wait one, Alpha," then there was the sound of a sniper rifle going off, and a very faint snarling. "Sorry about that. Now, what can I give you? We have normal sniper bullets, 'Brute Killers', Plasma Grenades, Frag Grenades and even a hail of 30 cal. bullets."

The Chief almost yelled into the link "Just a hail of sniper rounds to the Brute position in front of us. Just suppress them, we will flank them!" The com link crackled to life again. Linda's voice came out, though she spoke in a mock confused tone.

"A hail of sniper rounds without accuracy? Come on Chief, that's like eating toast without butter. Not to bad, but incomplete with out the other. If you want, 'Novamee can set up the machine gun and provide suppression fire, if needed, okay?"

"Fine, fine, just hurry up!" the Chief yelled into the link. Soon, a hail of 30 cal. bullets came screaming in from where ever Linda and 'Novamee had chosen as their hiding spot. It was followed by a series of _cracks_ as tracer rounds flew in to join the fun. This distraction forced the gunner of the Plasma Cannon to shift his fire to where the shots had originated from. As soon as the Chief saw this, he pointed at one of the Grunts holding a Fuel Rod Cannon. "You! Take out that cannon!"

The Grunt let out a squeak for a reply, and with courage not normally seen in Grunts, he jumped out of the alley, and fired a barrage of explosive plasma that slowly, almost lazily, arced their way across the alley street and impacted all around the Plasma Cannon. Due to the splash damage, the cannon exploded into a fireball of flying debris that shredded the Brute manning it.

The Chief patted the Grunt on the head, and ran out onto the alley street. "Come on!" he shouted, and all the others who were pinned down ran out and charged forward into the alley, looking through the numerous off branches for any Brutes in them. Finally, they found what they were looking for; an alleyway that had a clear shot into the Brute barricade. Most normal Elites would have let out a battle cry, but the Spec-Ops were well trained. They stayed silent, waiting for the opportune moment. Finally, the moment came. The Brute Captain, along with several others, all met at the same place. Looking around, the Chief could see that all the captains were there. The Chief nodded.

On the Chief's nod, the Elite's threw Plasma Grenades, and the Grunt with the Fuel Rods fired them into the barricade. It exploded into a ferocious fireball that consumed anything within a three metre radius. Brutes, Jackals, ammunition and supplies were all devoured without a hint of mercy. Afterwards, all that was left was a large, smoking crater in the ground. A few Grunts shook their heads to clear their ears. "What was that?" asked one of the Elites. The Chief stepped over to the edge of the crater. Looking around, he answered "I believe that the grenades detonated the other grenades and ammunition near the barricade, causing what you just saw." The other Elites nodded in understanding.

"Let's keep moving, warriors. We need to cause a lot more destruction to the anti-air grid if the main force is to survive the planetary landing," 'Zamamee announced. A murmur of agreement followed. The team then continued to move down the street, careful of any ambushes that the Brutes may have set up.

* * *

After making sure that the wounded Commando was secure, Corr pulled up a casualty list. It was bad. Every squad had lost at least four members, with a few wounded. With most of the medics trained to handle laser blasts, some weren't sure how to handle the plasma bolts. Many suffered as a result. With a sigh, he activated his com-link. "Squad leaders, merge your remaining men with the squad after you alphabetically. So squad B, meet me at my location. Over and out." With that, he cut the link. Within a matter of minutes, the remaining Commandoes and Seatroopers had linked up with his squad, and formed a full squad. After looking everyone over, he shouted "Alright men, let's move out! Watch out for any ambushes!"

About twenty minutes after leaving the alley, the group rounded a corner, and was met with a patrol of five Jackals, of which, two were bearing orange shields, signifying a high rank. The Jackals were caught off-guard with their shields lowered at their waists, and two were shot by several Troopers at the same time. The other's brought their shields up, and formed an impenetrable barrier. The squad dived in two different directions to avoid the twin blasts of overcharged plasma. Once back on their feet, all of them raised their blaster rifles, and poured lasers into the shields.

The Jackals continued to hold out, however, and were still advancing. One of the green shielded Jackals lost his balance, and stumbled slightly. That was all the time Corr needed to pump the Jackal full of lasers. All that was left were the two orange shield Jackals, which continued to advance. Suddenly, one of the Jackals went down in a hail of blaster bolts. The other squawked in confusion, and looked up. He saw a Seatrooper who had climbed up to the roof, and used the elevated position to fire down onto the pair of Jackals head. The surviving Jackal managed to get off two shots, before all the others on the ground blasted him.

The twin plasma blasts hit the Seatrooper, who toppled down. A Commando caught him before he hit the ground. The medic rushed over to him. The medic looked him over, and then tore off the helmet. The trooper had blood leaking from the side of his mouth. "D-di-did we get them, sir?" the wounded trooper managed to gasp out.

"Sure we did. You did great, soldier. You'll be fine," reassured Corr.

The medic found the wound, and applied some bacta to it, and then bandaged it. "All done. Stay away from excessive movement to avoid putting strain on the wound," said the medic.

"Come on. Let's keep moving," said Corr.

* * *

At Linda and 'Novamee's location, both of them were firing at the Brutes that they could see. Then, 'Novamee heard the distinctive rumble of a Wraith's engine. It was getting louder, and he assumed it was hostile. They hadn't brought any armour with them, so it had to be Brute controlled. Unexpected, and suddenly, the Wraith smashed through a house, and aimed the mortar directly at them. "Linda, let's get out of here!" he shouted.

But it was too late as the Wraith fired its plasma mortar. The deadly ball collided with their position with a blinding light, and an enormous explosion was the last thing he heard before bringing his head down. All he could do was hope that Linda wasn't near the blast zone. The mortar was aimed for him, so hopefully she would be okay. He poked his head up, and surveyed the damage.

* * *

At the Master Chief's location, he and half of Spec-Ops Team 4 were finishing off the last Brute guarding the AA Cannon. According to Cortana's scans, this gun was essential to the overlapping field of AA fire, and its destruction would cause a hole, in which the dropships would slip through. "Alright. Start setting the explosives. We have about, two minutes before the dropships launch," ordered 'Zamamee. The Elites and Grunts moved around the gun, and started to place purple packages, that were the explosives that the Covenant used. The Chief also helped, by placing several C-12 charges across the gun. "All done? Good. Let's go."

With that, the Elites and Grunts started to run from the gun. When they and the Master Chief was a safe distance away, 'Zamamee pushed the detonator. The C-12 charges exploded first, and the heat set off the plasma explosives. The fireball that ensued was seen for kilometres away. At that exact time, another fireball appeared, and they received a message from Bravo team. "Explosives set off, sir. Mission accomplished." Came Fred's voice.

Seconds later, several other AA guns overloaded and the heat melted and fused the barrel together. The explosions had short-circuited the wiring underground, which supplied power. The extra energy was diverted to the other guns, which were all ready operating at peak maximum output, and the guns overloaded. Just in time to, as in the clear sky, multiple black specks started to appear. Looking up, the Chief saw them. "Looks like the Marines have finally landed."

* * *

'Novamee scrambled out from where he had sheltered from the plasma mortar. He heard the sound of the Wraith driving away. The pilot had clearly thought that Linda had perished in the explosion. It was no surprise, as there was a large pile of rubble where Linda had once stood. He was about to turn away when some of the rubble shifted. Whipping around, he saw a green armoured hand punch out of the rubble, before stretching, and then falling limp. With new hope, leapt over to the hand, and started to frantically move away the material burying her.

After a few agonising minutes, which seemed like hours, he had shifted enough rubble to expose Linda's limp form, her upper torso sticking out from the rubble. He quickly keyed his com-link. "'Zamamee! We need assistance! Linda has been hit, and is half buried in rubble. I think we need an immediate evacuation of her!"

When no answer came through the link, he repeated the message again. Finally, 'Zamamee's calm voice came over. "'Novamee, stay calm. The main assault force is now planetside. Look up. See those black dots? Those are the dropships now. Radio in for one to pick you, and the Spartan up. We are leaving now. Our job is done. Good work. See you in the ship." The link then cut off.

Seconds after the link was cut, there was an explosion as the Wraith that had fired on them exploded. Apparently, it had found out that they were still alive, and it had come to change that. A Pelican then came in low, and hovered just a few metres before them. 'Novamee waved the Marines that had disembarked over. There were expressions of surprise and disbelief as they saw the Spartan half buried in rubble. A few of them rubbed their eyes.

"Damn! Am I seeing what you're seeing?" One Marine remarked.

"That a Spartan?" Asked another.

"Is he still alive?" The questions just kept on coming.

The Marines kept saying similar phrases as they helped 'Novamee dig Linda out of the rubble. Once she fully dug out, the Marines loaded her into the Pelican. 'Novamee climbed in after her. The pilot then fired the belly thrusters, and the Pelican lifted off. The ramp leading to the passenger bay sealed, and then there was a hiss as the airlock sealed. 'Novamee sat down, and relaxed for the first time, and listened to the rumble as the Pelican left the atmosphere. Looking out, he saw the entire planet. It was mostly blue, with only a few touches of yellow. It would be a waste to glass the planet, he mused. As the Pelican continued towards the titanic _Divine Blade_, he remembered…

* * *

A.N: Well, sorry about the loooong wait, I took a big, big break, heh heh heh. I've just about finished school, so more regular updates are coming now! Next chapter will be dedicated to 'Novamee's past, as some of you might want to know him better. After that, the Fleet of Retribution will meet the New Republic! Well, diplomatically, of course. Stay tuned, and keep the reviews coming! Thank you all the loyal readers so far, this story would be so much slower without your support! Thanks to you all out there! 


	7. Rememberance

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Hello again everybody! Sorry about the super long wait for the last chapter. I hope that this one didn't take as long as the last one. This chapter is about 'Novamee's past. It will range from Halo, to maybe after the war. Also, 'Novamee's full name is Mir 'Novamee. The reason why the whole chapter is Italiced is because the whole chapter is about 'Novamee's past. Happy reading!)

Reviews:

Star wars 2136: Thanks for the review and encouragement. Sorry about the long wait. Keep the reviews coming!

brian: I'll try to update faster. Oh, and about your 'threat' (puts a Nova down and runs to a place where I can't be found), beat that! And thanks for the review.

pwned123123: Thanks for that. Sorry about the misspelled words, though.

richard9311: Thanks. I'm glad you like it!

FATDUDE: Umm, thanks, I guess.

Chapter 7: Remembrance

_

* * *

Young Mir burst in through a door, full of life and energy. The fuel for the energy and excitement became known almost immediately. "Father's coming home today!" young Mir shouted as he ran into the kitchen where his mother was preparing a meal. His mother smiled at him, the top mandibles moving apart._

"_Yes dear," she answered. Mir was becoming so much like his father already, and he was only half his father's age. Mir then practically danced away, looking forward to meeting his father. Because of the war, Mir's father had to fight away from home. He had recently sent them a message about him getting a leave to come home. He was to arrive very soon, so she was preparing a meal for him. _

_That early evening, Mir was sitting at the table, doing his work that had been set in the education centres that he attended, when the door slid open, and a tall, broad shouldered Elite walked into the room, with a great big smile on his face. _

"_Guess whose home?" the Elite said in a sing-song voice. Mir jumped up, and upon seeing his father, leapt into his arms joyously. He hugged his father, and was still in his arms when his mother walked in from the adjacent room. She smiled at him, and the father returned it. _

_After their meal, when Mir was sleeping in his room, his father and mother sat down to talk. The father sighed heavily. His mood had changed drastically from the happier mood earlier on. "You know, Mir is just a few years away from being old enough to be placed in the Academy, right?" stated his father. His mother sighed as well, equally sad. She only spoke two words. "I know."_

_The Academy was the military training centre, where all male Elites at the age of twelve annual units (or twelve years) were required to enrol. Failure to do so was considered to be a disgrace to the family. Mir was now ten annual units, so in two short annual units, Mir would be leaving home, only returning after the graduation. After only a month, Mir would be whisked away to the army, and after that, who knows? Mir could be killed. The mere thought of it was too much to bear, and Mir's mother broke down in tears. His father pulled her in close. _

_It was the worst part of being an Elite mother. All the sons in the family who reach twelve are taken to the Academy. If they fail, they are forced to do it again and again until they graduate. The courses were five annual units long, so when they graduate, most would be around seventeen annual units, perfect for the frontlines, now that there was a war going on. _

_Within a week, Mir's father had left again for the battle, leaving the two of them. Then came the day when Mir's mother decided to tell Mir about the Academy, and what will happen. Mir's eyes were wide with shock, fear or excitement-she couldn't tell. "Does that mean that I will be like Father?" he asked._

_His mother smiled and rubbed his head affectionately. "Yes dear, it does."_

_

* * *

Two annual units passed like a blink of an eye, and before Mir's mother had knew it, he was on the way to the Academy. She shed tears for a long, long time._

_At the Academy, Mir stood in line with many other young Elites. There were about one hundred of them, and all of them, like him, were scared. They had never been in such a situation before. Then, an older Elite walked up to them. He looked at them, and finally said "You will not last one unit in battle against the human soldiers, even if they are not supported by their...archaic armoured vehicles. Well, we are here to change that. This Academy will train you to be the greatest warriors to ever live. Each of you will be trained in the ways of the warriors gone by, upholding tradition, and learn to use the generous gifts that the Forerunners have provided for our safety to the Great Journey. Every single one of you will be divided into five different groups." After dividing them, he once again started another speech. "This group will become your family from now on. You will train in your groups. You will eat in your group. And most importantly, you shall fight with your group."_

_At hearing the last statement, one of the Elites in Mir's group raised his hand, indicating a question. _

"_Yes?" barked the instructor. _

"_Umm, when you said fight with our group, do you mean we will stay in the same group after graduating from here?" questioned the Elite._

_The instructor laughed. "No, will fight another, different group in war games and mock battles. After graduating, you will be split into different battalions for the war. Any other questions?" _

_No-one raised their hands. "Good. Let us begin your training!" announced the instructor. For the next few weeks, Mir and the other Elites in his group trained to increase their physical stamina, and their strength. They also started learning about military tactics, and about the humans and their ways. It was in the fifth week that the fun began. Mir and his group started to train with weapons._

_It quickly became obvious that Mir was gifted, for he could shoot at a far longer distance more accurately than his other Elites. They started to train in obstacle obstacles, sometimes carrying weapons and firing and at drones. Mir and the others performed admirably, much to the satisfaction of the trainers. While they were not the best group, they were far from the worse, because the hundred recruits he had seen at the beginning were only one of many batches. At last, they were subjected to a three mile long course littered with traps and drones that fired back. While the plasma fired couldn't kill, it stung, and none of the recruits wanted to get hit. _

_After this came the most fun part of all the training. They were to participate in a mock battle against another group of trainees in park designed for this purpose of training specifically. The aim of the game was to capture the other group's flag, while not losing their own. The first was the greatest, and Mir remembered it well. Mir stood with his team mates. All were holding plasma rifles that were toned down to cause only a sting if one was hit. Their amour had shields, but once it was gone the Elite was out, or in real life, dead. Mir was not the leader of the group. A large Elite was, and his name was Muko. All the Elites looked up to him, as he was a fearless leader. He was drawing a picture on the dirt that they were standing on. It was a crude drawing of the base where the other team's flag was kept. He had most of the base, although he wasn't sure if it was accurate enough. He stood up._

"_OK, I have a plan. We will leave ten of us here to protect our flag. The rest of us will take the enemies flag. We should go in different directions to maximize our chance for success. Remember, if the entire group is out, we lose. So if the attacking team is out, the defenders go in. everyone agree?" There was a murmur of agreement. "Ok, let us go! For the glory of our family!" There was a roar, and the team ran off, to find their positions. _

_Mir ran to a high outcrop that he had seen earlier. It was taller than the other outcrops, and it had a large boulder that would come in handy if he was seen, and if the other team started shooting at him. He scanned the opposing team's base, and spotted some of the warriors, foolishly exposing themselves, exactly unlike what they were taught in training. Mir fired at them, and knocked two down without much of a problem. The problem was the third one, who started shooting wildly at Mir's general position, unknowingly giving away his position to Muko and Svaier, who then promptly shot him. _

_Unfortunately, Zuka and Rtas ran into a crossfire from the opposition's defenders. Mir didn't notice the Elite creeping up on him, until his shields was suddenly at zero, knocking him out of the exercise. He slumped down in defeat, and his shoulders sagged. His first time in this exercise and he was already defeated. He slumped down against the rock, and waited for the defeat of the rest of his group. Unknowingly to him, Rtas and Zuka had survived the crossfire, and were making their way to the base. The infiltrated, and stole the flag while the defenders were busy with an all out offensive launched by the remainders of the assault team. _

_With a shout, they ran off towards their base, splitting in different directions so to confuse anyone who was giving chase. As soon as they reached home base, Rtas threw down the flag with a triumphant shout. A siren blared, signalling the end of the exercise. The instructor walked in. he gave much criticism about teamwork, as well as congratulations to Mir's team. All the Elites then tramped off to the dining hall, as the sun was setting down. He had no idea of how quickly time could pass. _

_

* * *

The rest of the annual unit passed quickly. As they approached the end of their first annual unit, they were treated to a battle simulator. As they stood inside, the walls seemed to come alive, and they saw a group of humans charging them. All of them instinctively ducked down, and started shooting. The humans went down quickly. The Elites all started cheering, but they failed to notice a small round ball. "Hey, what's this?" asked one of the Elites as he picked up the strange object. All of them started to crowd around, and just as Mir reached them, the device exploded. The explosion caused many of the closest Elites to be 'killed' and be removed from the simulation. Mir was merely thrown on his back, as well as a few other lucky ones._

_Just then, the chatter of weapons-human weapons to be exact, filled the air. Three Elites went down in the barrage of bullets. Things were looking bad now, as they had now lost over half the group, and a much larger group of humans were charging them. Mir started to shoot them and was still firing when his rifle overheated. "Hold positions!" shouted Rtas "Stop the advance!" the remaining Elites looked around, unsure, but when another Elite came crashing to the ground, they all but hurled themselves to the ground and started firing. They at last wiped out the group, but at the cost another three Elites. Mir looked around, and only saw six Elites remaining, counting himself. He was proud to be one of the few left. _

_Just as Mir finished his mental thoughts, the simulation was terminated, and they found themselves in the room again. More berating from the instructor followed, and they were free to go around for the afternoon. While the others went outside to play, Mir went to his quarters to write a letter to his mother. It was what he did at most of the time. He wrote most of the time for two reasons: he wished to keep in touch with his family, and two, he was shy. He didn't like running around as much as the other Elites. Family was more important to him._

All the rest of the annual units passed quickly, and before Mir knew it, he was standing on a stage, being presented his badge, and ushered into a new battalion of Elites. Because of the war, he was being moved out immediately, to a battleground; the human colony of Paris IV.

_

* * *

He was standing inside a Shadow, one of the many in a convoy inbound for the main evacuation centre in the capital of the planet. He and many other Elites were nervous-this was their first true battle. The Shadow suddenly halted. There was shouting outside, as many of the Elites wanted to know what was taking so long. Mir, now christened 'Novamee, peered outside, and saw what the problem was-a roadblock. The lead Shadow then rammed its way through. It was from there that the whole thing started to go wrong. Halfway through the roadblock, the Shadow exploded. Instantly the gunners started swivelling to locate the targets. The driver of the second last Shadow in line backed his Shadow into the last Shadow in panic, ramming it._

_A smoke trail suddenly appeared, followed by another three. Mir watched in fascination as they made their way to the last two Shadows. When the first one struck, it rocked the Shadows, but when the other three hit, the two Shadows exploded into flames, taking the other one with it. Mir then realised that they were trapped. They couldn't go forward or back, so he leapt out the side of the Shadow. "Follow me!" he shouted. It was good advice, and everyone else followed him. Then, the rest of the Elites followed, including those from the surviving Shadows. He led out and just in time, as a human fighter, losing control, plunged into the column of Shadows, and Elites, Grunts and Jackals that had been staying near the Shadows, firing at the humans above with an explosion that wiped out the entire column. _

_Mir looked at the group, and only about twenty Elites, and thirty Grunts and Jackals remained. "What we do now?" asked a Grunt. _

"_We continue to the evacuation centre, and destroy it!" announced 'Peramee, who was obviously aiming for a promotion. Mir was inclined to disagree, taking a more conservative approach. "Why are we taking an approach like this where we could easily lose?" asked 'Novamee. "We have lost half our number, hardly suitable for a mass charge. We should approach them carefully." The other Elite didn't listen. _

"_We charge, and that is final!" declared 'Peramee. 'Novamee was overruled by him as almost everyone was agreeing with 'Peramee. "Very well," 'Novamee said. "You have signed our deathwish." 'Peramee shrugged, and promptly started to run towards the centre of the city, where the evacuation centre was. The entire group rushed forward, with Mir bringing up the rear. Soon they began to hear shouts, as well as human gunfire. They could also hear the roar of engines, as the humans started to evacuate the city and well as their soldiers. A human fighter plane flew by over them suddenly, and they all realized that they had lost the element of surprise. Things were going to be a lot harder now. The fighter flew by again, except that it blasted the road with its weapons. Grunts, Jackals and even Elites fell beneath the devastating effect of four cannons. Mir dived for cover, and was rewarded when the plane flew past, clearly regarding everyone as dead. _

_Mir emerged from cover, as did the survivors. Mir made a quick count, and counted only ten Elites including himself, five Grunts and fifteen Jackals. Most of the Elites had died when they defied the aircraft, and started shooting, only to get cut down seconds later. To his dismay, 'Peramee had also survived, though his shoulder was bleeding. There was no doubt that the wound had been caused by shrapnel, as Mir could see small craters dotting the street. 'Peramee, oblivious to the fact that only thirty of them remained, and continued to charge down the street. Mir followed him, albeit reluctantly. _

_When they got there, they found a human with dark skin, and wearing a ridiculous helmet, holding a plasma grenade. He ignited, and threw while yelling "No Covie bastard is getting into this party!" _

_The plasma grenade stuck onto a Jackal who had been too eager to get at the human. Seconds later, the grenade exploded, taking the Jackal with it. "Alright! Who else wants some? Come and get it!" the human was shouting. He then threw grenade after grenade into the approaching Covenant. Mir knew it was not wise to charge in, so he waited. _

_After what seemed like forever, the human's taunts and the explosions had ceased. He peered around the corner, and apart from all the dead bodies, found nothing. He walked carefully around, and saw no trace of the human. The patter of feet made him whirl around and point his rifle in the direction. He relaxed when he saw the crimson red armour of a Veteran Elite, followed by a group of Minor Elites. He breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't alone now. "Your Excellency," said Mir as he walked over to the Elite, "I am glad that you are here. The rest of the warriors were wiped out."_

_The Veteran turned towards him, and suddenly, a blow sent Mir to the ground, his vision growing hazy. The Veteran stepped over him, and ordered the Elites behind him to advance. All of the Minor Elites followed him, also stepping over him. They had just started leaving when Mir stumbled to his feet and started to follow them. Just as the group of Elites passed underneath an archway, Mir who was only a few metres behind them, saw something glint within the disappearing haze of his vision. He ran to catch up, to stop them, but before the words left his mouth, there was a sharp crack, and a lethal, but mysteriously enchanting blue explosion ensued as three crates of plasma grenades were detonated by the human grenade. _

_The explosion hurled him onto his back, and he saw the human transport fly up and out of the atmosphere as the darkness slowly overtook his vision as he blacked out. _

_

* * *

Several months in a recovery centre saw him miss the events of Halo, though rumours were running rampant through the Covenant about a group of humans in special armour destroying legions of Covenant with ease. There were reports of a single human destroying the gateway to the Great Journey, or the Sacred Rings._

_After those months in recovery, Mir was sent to even more battles than before. Before long, he was given the armour of a Veteran, which pleased him greatly. He went off to battles, won battles, or lost and watched as plasma burned planets to nothing but ash._

_One evening, he was approached by a pair of SpecOps Elites. The noise immediately dropped, though there was still the occasional whisper. The Elites approached the table where Mir was sitting. They gestured at him to follow them, and he did so without complaint. He followed them until they were out in the hallway. When they did so, the pair remarked to him. "Silence is a great way of greeting old friends." _

_Mir looked closer at them, and realised in shock that the pair was no more than Zuka and Rtas, though their last name was 'Zamamee and 'Vadumee, respectively. The three started to trade stories, and rumours. Mir thought that Zuka was killed in the battle for Halo, though when he mentioned it, Zuka merely laughed. Rtas had also changed; most noticeably both of his left mandibles were missing._

_After exchanging festivities, Rtas looked at Mir. "You know that we didn't pull you away from the hall just to talk to you," with a fairly sombre tone. The mood had quickly changed from light-hearted chit-chat to military matters. "We have been told that you are now an official member of SpecOps Team 4. Well done," said Zuka. _

"_What? But I'm still a Veteran." Objected Mir. _

"_Not any longer, Mir. You're in our team now," Said Rtas. In reality, Mir didn't mind, though it was going to be different from now on. _

_

* * *

Several months had passed and Mir was getting used to being on Zuka and Rtas' team. The three often traded jokes, and their relationships. Before long, they were called to a meeting where the new weapons of the Covenant were officially announced. Mir was definitely happy when the Beam Rifle was introduced. It meant that he could finally have an effective weapon at long range, as plasma did minimal damage at long ranges.__

* * *

Tensions were running high throughout the Covenant, as all races took a 'side'. Before long, civil war broke out among the Covenant. Mir and his team, excluding Rtas and Zuka as they were reassigned, had to defend Dock 9 on High Charity against the Brutes and Jackals as they Elite and Grunt civilians were evacuated. Mir was nearest to the Dock as the height and distance to the entry was sufficient for him to snipe. The rest of his team set up barricades and plasma cannons to halt the tidal wave of Brutes that was to come. The first wave that broke in consisted of mainly Jackals._

_Mir easily shot the Jackals in the head with out much of a problem. The Brutes that poured in was the main challenge. Every gun was lighting up to hold them back while the civilians boarded the Phantoms that would take them to the capital ships for safety. Mir found that two headshots were needed to kill a Brute, mainly because of the helmet that they wore, but several times he scored lucky and the beam went beneath the helmet. Before long, all the civilians were evacuated, and they could get off High Charity. However, getting off the dock was harder to achieve. Brutes, Jackals and Drones were still relentlessly attacking, so they couldn't get out through the entry doorway. _

"_What are we supposed to do now?" yelled Mir over the plasma fire. "We can't get out through the way we came in!" _

"_Maybe we can when they stop attacking!" yelled back 'Hajamee, one of the plasma cannon gunners. _

"_If they stop, not when they stop!" fairly screamed 'Asnamee. _

_They continued to fire, and the bodies piled up higher and higher. Eventually, salvation came in the form of a human dropship that smashed through the walls of the dock and fired missiles at the entry way, collapsing the doorway. They stared at it in shock until Zuka poked his head out of the troop bay. "What are you waiting for? Get in!" he shouted. _

_Not wasting a second, they all jumped in, relieved that they were away from the chaos. It was soon that a Grunt asked how Zuka had procured a human dropship, which he explained. He was patrolling around, when a human capital ship had crashed into High Charity. He went to investigate, but only found the Flood. He had fought his way around, until he found the launch bay by accident, with a dropship still there._

_Closing the blast doors to stop the Flood for now, he clambered in, and played around with the controls until he understood them. He then flew around, until he heard a transmission to kill the Elite defenders of Dock 9. He then blasted his way through to rescue them. Mir sat back on the uncomfortable human backrest and fell asleep, as did many other Elites and Grunts. _

_

* * *

Many months later, after so much fighting against the Brutes and Prophets with the strangest of all allies, the humans, they were preparing to fight the battle that would win them the war, or cost them it. It was the battle for the Prophet's homeworld. Mir had never seen such a battle before, as he fought alongside humans. The human leaders had decided that if they lost this, they would lose the war, so everything they had was sent to fight._

_Eventually, they succeeded, at the cost of many warriors and machines, though it was something that with time, they could rebuild. A truce was called for with the humans, and on Earth, in an open stadium, the truce was signed by the Elite Councillors, and the human Admirals and leaders. There was celebration throughout the Covenant, as more than twenty annual units of war, peace was finally about. _

_

* * *

Mir stayed around on the human MAC platform Cairo for sometime, doing nothing but view human culture, and maybe glimpse the ever reclusive Demons. One day, at the firing range, being so engrossed in shooting at paper cut-outs of Brutes with a Beam Rifle, he didn't notice someone come up behind him._

"_Nice shooting for a split-lip," said a voice behind him. He whirled around to find himself staring at a golden visor. He instinctively backed up a little, and stared at the Demon in front of him. "Demon," he muttered. The Demon cocked its head to the side quizzically, and said "I'm not the Demon who destroyed Halo. He is elsewhere," it said. _

"_Then who are you?" he hissed._

"_I am one of the remaining Demons. If you hadn't attacked Reach then they-" the bold voice started to crack a little "would still be alive." Said the Demon. _

"_I am, sorry for your loss then. I had no part of it." _

_Without a word the Demon pulled the Sniper Rifle off its back. "No matter. What's done is done. Hmm, how about a little contest? You and me." _

_Mir contemplated the challenge a bit, and then accepted. They both settled their rifles up, and decided on the targets. A computer would issue the go order. In the end, the Demon won by a single bullet. Mir grumbled, but decided to make friends. If they had a mission together, at least they won't be concerned about plotting each others demise. "My name is 'Novamee. Do you have a name, Demon?" he asked._

"_First of all, it is Spartan, not demon. And yes I do have a name," she answered. _

"_Then what is it?" questioned Mir. _

"_Why should I tell you?" replied the Spartan. _

"_Because it makes no sense for allies to be at each other's throats all the time."_

"_Fine. If you must know, it is Spartan-058."_

"_Surely you must have a real name, or at least a nickname." There was a moment's silence. _

"_You do know that names are personal. Only the ones I trust know my real name." _

"_How about a trade. I will tell you my first name, if you tell me your's." Mir hated to tell a human his first name, but he would if it meant a sign of trust. _

_The Spartan was standing there, looking at the ground. Finally, it spoke. "If you tell me your's, and I tell you mine, it means a sign of trust, right?" _

"_Yes."_

"_Alright. Since you're a sniper as well, we might get along quite well. My name, is Linda. Happy?" _

"_Yes. My own first name is Mir, Spa- Linda," answered Mir, now happier. _

_Linda then, much to Mir's surprise, removed her helmet, revealing a pale face underneath, with shoulder length blood red hair. "How about another round, Mir?" she asked smirking. "No visors and no scopes?" _

_Mir, not one to back down, accepted. Linda handed him a human pistol. He looked at it uncomfortably. She won without question. Mir glared at her, and muttered something he had learnt from a Marine. "Bitch."_

"_Split-lip."_

_He launched himself at her, though it was more of a friendly spout than an 'I will kill you' one. Then, another Spartan walked in through the door, and stared as Linda wrestled with Mir. "Linda! What in the world is going on here?" Needless to say, both of them blamed each other. _

_When the Spartan left, Mir turned to Linda. "So are we friends?" he asked. _

"_Some friend you are, blaming me," joked Linda. _

* * *

The jolting of the Pelican pulling into the hangar bay shook 'Novamee from his remembrance. As soon as he jumped out, multiple medics pulled Linda out and rushed her to the infirmary. When the other Pelican carrying the other Spartans arrived, Fred said "Why is it always Linda who ends up in serious life-threatening situations?" in an attempt to lighten the situation. Everyone else shrugged. They were too busy imagining a team without Linda, though there was a chance that she might survive.

A medic poked his head in. "Sir, I have news on Spartan-058." Everyone took a sharp breath as the medic delivered the news…

* * *

(A.N: Hahahahaha I'm evil, aren't I? Now, don't go clicking the 'Back' just yet. I have another chapter for you all! Think of it as a Christmas gift, to all you fans out there. So the real note is in the next chapter. Enjoy!) 


	8. Bonus Chapter

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Well, a surprise for all you die hard fans of this story! As a Christmas present for you all, a second chapter for you all to bask in! Now, simply scroll down and use those eyes of yours to read this chapter! Also, a mistake on my behalf. In Chapter 2, I wrote five Spartans. In reality, there are only 4. Luckily, it won't affect the story. Enjoy to your hearts content!)

Chapter 8: New Allies

* * *

"Apart from a broken right arm, and a concussion, there was nothing too life-threatening about. There was some internal bleeding, but it was lucky that she got here before it became serious. She will recover, though she will have to avoid combat for at least the next few weeks," announced the medic. Everyone let out an inaudible sigh of relief-Linda would live.

Meanwhile, on the bridge, the Arbiter was discussing the terms of an alliance with the Grand Alliance. Being very influential in the UCNC, he had almost as much power as Lord Hood. He had the rank of Admiral within the UCNC, and was a member of the War Council. Finally, after much discussing, Captain Piett was glad that they could make and alliance-the Grand Alliance was in need of some new allies.

"Good. The co-ordinates for the planet are 000. We'll see you there, ok?" asked Piett.

The Arbiter agreed, and gave the co-ordinates to all the other ships, after the dropships had retrieved, as well as the Marines and Elites. The fleet then awaited the signal for the jump into Slipspace. "The fleet is waiting for your signal, Arbiter," announced Cortana.

"Good. We jump in ten seconds," said the Arbiter. "Give the countdown."

"Timer is set. Signal transmitted to the fleet. Everyone is ready."

The next second, there was a flash of light, and the entire fleet disappeared into the alternate dimension, not leaving a trace that they were ever there.

* * *

Over Coruscant, the centre of the galaxy, also known as the city planet, there was nervousness throughout the entire planet. Many had heard that the fleet that had liberated Dac was bringing back new allies. No-one knew who the new allies were going to be, and if they wouldn't attack the planet. There was a sudden gasp throughout the planet, as the fleet came back, and over two hundred ships came out, some sleek and silver, others bulky and with hard edges. What drew the crowds attention as the emergence of these vessels was displayed on the HoloNet throughout the planet, was the massive ship in the middle of the fleet. It dwarfed everything in the fleet, and even the Super Star Destroyer that was circling the fleet.

* * *

In the private and luxurious rooms of 500 Republica, Leia Organa-Solo was dressing as fast as she could. Cal Omas had asked her to represent the Alliance, so she was to go to the UCNC flagship and formally discuss the terms of an alliance between them, along with Supreme Commander Pellaeon. They were to take the _Tantive V_ to the flagship, and to meet the leaders. For 'protection' as Omas had put it, a squad of Alliance Troopers was to accompany them.

"Why the rush?" a smug voice said from the doorway. Leia looked at the voice to see her husband, Han Solo.

"I am to meet with the leaders of the UCNC, if you must know," she told him. He frowned.

"Why you? Couldn't they have sent some other political big-head to negotiate?"

"Han, Omas asked me to go. It's not like I can refuse him, and he said that I have the best negotiation skills required for this," she said, and then added at the look on his face, "This is extremely important, love, because if we can secure a treaty, we might be able to push back against the CIS."

Many knew that the war wasn't going as well as some could hope. The fleets of the Grand Alliance were being pushed back, and in some sectors they were defending the Mid Rim, which wasn't a particularly nice thought. The fleets simply weren't strong enough to hold back the constant wave of destroyers and frigates, and add to the fact that there was much debate as to where to send a fleet, allowed the CIS to get a firm foothold before the fleets even arrived.

Han gave her a pained look. "Well, if you must go, at least come back to me in one piece, ok?"

Leia gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and then gathered herself and stepped out the door, shouting that she would come back in one piece. Leia before long reached the dock, and boarded the _Tantive V_. she then went to the conference room, where she met Supreme Commander Pellaeon. "Ah, Leia, it is so good of you to come. Please, sit, sit," as he ushered her to her seat.

"My thanks, Commander. Do you happen to know what they call themselves?" she questioned.

"From what Captain Piett told me after the Battle of Dac, they are the UCNC, or United Covenant Naval Command. It apparently consists of two groups-the UNSC and the Covenant, who were at war with each other, but joined forces after twenty years of war. Quite interesting if you ask me," he answered.

The captain's voice suddenly came over the speakers. "Mrs. Organa-Solo, Supreme Commander, we are approaching the flagship. If you wish to see it, I can give you a video feed of it right now."

"Put it on, please," called back the Commander. Instantly, a Holoscreen popped into life, and showed a massive ship on it. Leia and Pellaeon were stunned at the sheer size of the ship.

The screen soon clicked off, and the _Tantive V_ was slowing down, meaning that they were docking with the flagship. There was a hiss, and the landing gear of the ship opened up, and the ship settled down in one of the larger hangar bays of the _Divine Blade_. Leia, Pellaeon and their guards moved to the boarding ramp, and walked down it when it had finished opening.

Outside, she stepped into an enormous hangar bay, and in front of her was who she presumed to be the captain. It was tall, and had four mandibles in place of where a mouth would be. It was also clad in armour that seemed ancient and ceremonial. Beside it were four more aliens of the same species, but they were clad in armour that seemed more suited to battle. The captain stepped forward.

"I assume that you are the representatives that the Grand Alliance has sent to negotiate?" it asked. Leia nodded.

"Good. We can step into the conference room for more privacy. Come, this way," it said, and then it started to walk away, the guards following. While on the way, the Alliance Troopers gave one of the aliens a glare. It growled threateningly, and the Trooper decided that it was enough for now.

Once in the conference room, they all sat down on chairs that moulded its self to fit more snugly. The guards stood behind the person they were protecting. "I am the Arbiter, the commander of the Fleet of Retribution, which consists of all the ships that you can see that belong to us. We are not an expeditionary fleet, but a fleet of war. Every single ship in our fleet is a ship of war, armed heavily. You are in the _Divine Blade_, a vessel designed to be the factor that turns the tide of battle. Now, on with the treaty making…"

* * *

The three of them discussed the terms of the treaty for over and hour. While Pellaeon wanted a united chain of command, the Arbiter had no wish for such a way of command. Also, the Arbiter had no intention of joining the Senate. Finally, it was agreed that while all UCNC ships had their own chain of command, they will still take orders from the Alliance if necessary. The Arbiter then stood up. "Well, allies, would you care to take a tour of the ship? She is a state of the art vessel." Leia and Pellaeon agreed.

As the Arbiter led his guests down to the gravity lift that would take them to the bridge, he kept thinking. What if they lost the war? Would any of his soldiers continue to fight? He kept musing until they reached the gravity lift to the bridge. His newest allies seemed alarmed when he stepped off, but they followed without question.

"Here is the bridge. The ship is crewed by a mix of humans and Covenant. They all get along much better than they did before, and we are lucky enough to have four of the remaining Spartans aboard," he informed them.

"Excuse me for the interruption Arbiter, but what are Spartans?" questioned Pellaeon.

"Spartans are genetically enhanced super-soldiers created by the UNSC to combat us during the Covenant War. If you wish, you can see them, though one is in the medical bay," answered the Arbiter.

Inside, there was a flurry of activity as a Ship Master stood there giving orders. A Ship Master was there to command the ship if t the Arbiter is incapacitated or wounded. Leia and Pellaeon stood watching as reports were delivered, and orders to change shifts were issued. Suddenly, an almost six-foot all blue woman materialized out of nowhere in front of the pair. Both of them almost jumped in shock. "Sorry about that. Cortana has a habit of surprising people." At this, Cortana frowned at the Arbiter.

"You're no fun anymore. Oh, I'm Cortana, this ship's main AI. I have almost complete control of the ship if needed, and help out the crews with their job," she said.

Cortana often downloaded herself to holo-drones to move around for fun, and to have an appearance for most of the time. "Cortana, maintain the bridge while I show our new allies around, would you?" the Arbiter asked her.

"I got a better idea. Why don't _you_ maintain the bridge, and _I'll_ show our new allies around?" shot back Cortana, though she had a smirk on her 'face'.

"You're funny," sarcastically remarked the Arbiter while leaving the bridge. Cortana had that kind of effect on people he mused.

* * *

"This is one of the many vehicle bays, where all our mechanized fighting units are stored, and repaired," announced the Arbiter while looking through a plane of glass down at one of the vehicle storage bays. Inside, all ready for action, were all the vehicles a commander could dream of, from the speedy Ghost to the lumbering Scorpion to the gigantic Scarab, it was all here. There were over fifty vehicles in one bay, and there were ten bays scattered across the ship, so a large crew was needed to man all the vehicles.

"Arbiter, what is that?" asked Pellaeon, pointing to a Scarab. It reminded him of an AT-AT, though it lacked a 'head'.

"That is a Scarab. It has one plasma cannon, and multiple machine guns and other weapons for anti-personnel fire," answered the Arbiter.

Next, he took them to the fighter bay, where the dropships, starfighters, bombers and atmospheric fighters were kept. Much like the vehicle bays, there were many fighter bays scattered throughout the whole ship.

"Due to safety reasons, I'm afraid that I am unable to take you to the reactors and the troops sleeping quarters. If you wish, you can see the firing range," apologized the Arbiter.

With both of them agreeing, he took them to the next gravity lift, where it took them to the level in which the firing range was located. When they reached a door, a sign said 'Wear Safety Gear'. Next to it, there was a rack where earmuffs were, as well as safety glasses. He handed them each a pair, before getting one himself, and opened the door.

When he opened it, there was orderly mayhem. Many Marines were firing at targets down almost fifty metres, with everything ranging from pistols, to Battle Rifles to even light machine guns.

Leia exclaimed in surprise. "You use slugthrowers?"

"What?" shouted the Arbiter. It was extremely difficult to hear anything in the firing range besides the firing of weapons, human and Covenant alike. Leia walked closer.

"You use slugthrowers?" she again shouted.

"What are slugthrowers?" the Arbiter asked. Pellaeon stepped up.

"Weapons that fire metallic projectiles," he shouted. The Arbiter nodded.

"We also use plasma weaponry. But recently we were outfitted with a plasma generator which we fitted into all the human weapons. It still fires bullets, or slugs as you call them, but coats them in plasma, making it much more effective against metal targets, as well as shields," he shouted back.

Pellaeon nodded. Slugthrowers weren't going to do much damage to battle droids, but the plasma would make it more effective. A Sergeant ran up to them. He gave a salute to the Arbiter, before addressing Leia and Pellaeon. "Welcome to the firing range, ma'am, sir. I'm Sgt. Pierce, and I'm in charge of this firing range here. Is there anything that you need to know?"

Both Leia and Pellaeon shook their heads. The Arbiter then led them out, putting the glasses and the earmuffs back. "Ok, do you still want to see the Spartans?" he questioned. More nods. "Alright. Let's go."

* * *

The three walked off to the Spartan quarters, where the three active Spartans, John, Fred and Kelly were playing cards. The door opened, and the Arbiter walked in, followed by two unfamiliar people. All three of them instantly stood up. "You can remove your helmets, you know," said the Arbiter. All three reluctantly removed their helmets, revealing pale faces, and their eyes stood out due to the lack of colour in their face.

"These are the Spartans, Commander. Well, what's left of them. They still perform exceptionally well, and three can do a job that a whole company can't," the Arbiter said.

"Very impressive, Arbiter. I hope that they will be able to turn the tide of the war."

With that, the three left. Kelly looked at Fred, who in turn looked at John. "What was that about?" questioned Kelly. Both John and Fred shrugged.

Back at the hangar bay, the Arbiter saw Leia and Pellaeon off. "Very interesting, Arbiter. I have a feeling that the tides of this war are about to turn-for the better," said Pellaeon as he stepped into the _Tantive V_. The Arbiter said nothing, merely nodding. The _Tantive V_ rose up, and shot out of the hangar. The Arbiter turned and walked to the bridge. Things were going to get interesting now, very interesting indeed…

* * *

(A.N: I know, don't tell me, this chapter was rushed. Still, you got a good read out of both chapters I hope. Now, if you could be so kind as to leave two reviews… Anyway, you won't be seeing more of me until next year, so Merry Christmas to you all, and a happy New Year! Chief Ratchet) 


	9. Of Meetings and Simulations

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Well, hi again. I really don't have much to talk about for now, so I'll keep this at a minimum. Also, the real fighting begins in the next chapter. Thanks to all the people who have reviewed so far, thought I might mention that. This is the chapter where all the other generals and admirals meet with the UCNC. Also, I need to clear a few things up for later chapters. When I mention Alliance Trooper, it refers to the soldiers the Rebel Alliance used in the Galactic Civil War. Stormtrooper refers to good old Stormies. I hope you enjoy this one!)

Reviews:

Star wars 2136 (Twice!): Thanks for the reviews and your loyalty to this story so far! Well, the standard Super Star Destroyer is approximately 19000 metres long. Consider all the ships destroyed in the war, and for materials-the glassed planets. Think about it. All that metal underneath the surface to be collected. The books say that the surface was glassed, not the entire planet destroyed. And don't forget the Engineers. Well, enjoy this chapter!

The One Called Sugar: Thanks. Enjoy this chapter as well!

Sunny: Here is another chapter! And I estimate that this might be around twenty to thirty chapters long. Thanks for reading!

thunder: Thanks for the review, hope you enjoy this update!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters that belong to Bungie or Lucas. I do own any made up characters of my own though.

Chapter 9: Of Meetings and Simulations

* * *

General Wedge Antilles, famous X-Wing pilot and leader of the Third Fleet, sat in the conference room in the newly constructed Orbital HQ for the Alliance military, along with the other Admirals and Generals of the other nine fleets, save for Admiral Richards. Pellaeon had called upon them to meet with their newest ally-the UCNC. When Wedge had first arrived, the UCNC fleet was in orbit around Coruscant, circling like sharks. Much like everyone else, he was soon staring at the _Divine Blade_ in wonder.

The _Divine Blade_ was not orbiting the planet; instead it was motionless. The gargantuan ship was about two miles away from Coruscant, and apparently undergoing repairs, or showing visitors around. Shaking his head a little, he looked around the large table where they were all seated. The chairs were more like cushions that adjusted itself to meet the requirements of any being who sat on it. All the other Admirals and Generals were weary-they were fighting non-stop for at least a few days.

All were pissed at the situation, to say in the least. The war was now going in the CIS' favour, and they were still relentlessly pushing onwards. All of the fleets were very reliant on the help of the First Fleet, commanded by Admiral Ontivere, who was more smiling than looking depressed. His fleet had suffered the fewest losses as of yet, and the First Fleet was divided into smaller battle groups, skirting around to lend help to the fleet's when it was required. Wedge's fleet had the second least losses, though they were bound to increase soon.

The Eighth Fleet had the most losses, mainly due to the fact that they had suffered the brunt of the Thyferra attack, in which out of the whole fleet of two hundred ships, less than a hundred remained. It also lost its commander during the battle. Almost all ships constructed so far were sent to rebuild the Eighth Fleet.

The door hissed open, and in walked Pellaeon, followed by an alien of which Wedge didn't recognize, and another two of the same species, one wearing golden armour, and the other wearing gleaming white armour. To his surprise, in followed a human, whose chest was filled with medals. Pellaeon asked them to sit, and they did. The Supreme Commander cleared his throat.

"Thank you all for coming. This is the Arbiter," he gestured towards the one in seemingly ancient armour, "Field Master Kayd 'Kinomee," he pointed at the one wearing gold armour, "SpecOps Commander Zuka 'Zamamee," he pointed at the one in white, "and Major General Armand," he said as pointed at the human. The three foreign officers seated themselves on the seats. "Arbiter, these are the Admirals and Generals of our fleets. Commanding the First Fleet is Admiral Ontivere. The commander of the Second Fleet is most unfortunately deceased, when the CIS first attacked. I am already into the procedures for selecting a new commanding officer. With command of the Third Fleet is General Wedge Antilles. Our commander for the Fourth Fleet is Admiral Richards, who unfortunately cannot be with us at this moment." And the introductions went on. When they were finally over, they went to discussing the enemy, and the UCNC's weaponry. "So our opponents are robots, manufactured in thousands of numbers," the Arbiter commented. Pellaeon nodded.

"The most basic unit is the Battle Droid. Armed with a single blaster rifle, they lack creativity, and only obey orders. However, there is an upgraded version. The Super Battle Droid features a thicker layer of armour, and has built-in wrist blasters and even a miniature rocket launcher in the wrist as well."

* * *

As Pellaeon informed the representatives of the UCNC about the CIS' ground units, holographic picture of the said unit appeared. Finally, it came for the UCNC to inform to Galactic Alliance of the UCNC's history and technology. Arbiter had been talking to Lord Hood for the last few hours before, and both of them agreed to the schematics of UCNC technology. When the Arbiter had told Pellaeon that there would little to no technology exchange between them, Pellaeon understood. Many factions liked to keep secrets, and the UCNC was no different.

"Well, our weaponry consists of two different types. The humans like to use ballistic weapons-"here he was cut off by Admiral Richards.

"Ballistic weapons? You mean slugthrowers?" he asked.

"If you mean solid projectiles, then yes. However, the races of the reformed Covenant use plasma weapon. Only recently, new technology have allowed our technicians and scientists to create a plasma field generator, which are now installed in all human weaponry, except for explosives," finished the Arbiter.

"What's a plasma field generator?" asked Wedge. He was interested in this new development. Slugthrowers weren't gong to do well against droids. Plasma, on the other hand, might do the trick.

"It is a small device that fits into a gun easily. It coats the bullet with plasma, giving it both of the qualities of each particular weapon," the Arbiter explained. Wedge nodded in understanding. Pellaeon spoke up.

""Well, I think that the necessary introductions and talks have finished. I think that some simulation would be good-we need to see the extent of your prowess-both in space and planetary. Just simulation of course," he said. The Arbiter nodded. It would be interesting to battle their soldiers. The Marines and other soldiers needed a work-out, as not all of them had seen battle at Dac.

"I can get some soldiers organised and ready within two hours," he said.

"Alright. Meet you in two hours?" asked Pellaeon. The Arbiter nodded.

"The simulation room is in this station. Someone will take you there."

"See you in two hours," said the Arbiter.

* * *

Within the medical bay of the Divine Blade, sat three Spartans, waiting to see if they could enter. A medic can through the door. "You may enter, Spartans," announced the medic. They didn't bother to answer; instead, they walked straight past him.

Inside, on one of the recovery beds, laid Linda. The other three Spartans were out of their armour. "Hey, how are you feeling?" asked John. Linda smiled.

"Just fine. The doctor said that I will be combat ineffective for at least a few more weeks, so I'm not exactly happy at that," she answered.

"That's funny. I could have sworn that you were smiling before," remarked Fred. "Also, mind me asking why you're always getting the R&R while we are out there getting our asses shot up?"

"You look intact to me," said Linda.

"Enough bickering already," interrupted Kelly. "So, Linda," she said with a sly grin. "Any of the Marines here catch your eye?" she asked.

Before she could answer, the Arbiter walked in. "Spartans, I need your assistance," he began.

"What is it?" asked John.

"It would be good to have you three participate in a simulated battle with our newest allies. It is in a simulator, and about two hundred soldiers would be nice. So, are you interested?" he asked.

* * *

Within two hours, Pellaeon had gotten together a company of soldiers, from Troopers to Stormtroopers. There were some SpecForce soldiers from every regiment. Soon, their opponents arrived, and filed in. At the front were three soldiers wearing green armour. All of them were unarmed, as were the Alliance troops. The soldiers were informed that each one of them had two 'lives'.

The computer database generates the weapon during the simulation, so there is little to no chance of actually getting wounded. Cortana had supplied them with the information necessary, but it was not enough should someone decide to reverse engineer the weapons.

The simulation began, and a battlefield appeared. It was a hilly place, with occasional large stretches of empty land. The objective was to simply blow the other side's team apart. The Master Chief spotted a Field Master, and walked over to him. "Field Master, this will be your battle. Lead the troops to victory," he said. The Field Master nodded, and ordered his troops to move forward, in small groups.

The Chief however, led his group of Spartans around the majority of the hills, if only to distract the main enemy base defences. "Kelly, recon the area ahead," the Chief whispered to her. Her acknowledgement light lit up for a moment. All the Spartans were heavily armed. Each carried a Jackhammer launcher, a Battle Rifle with an underslung grenade launcher, as well as multiple grenades. Even with all the equipment, Kelly was able to sprint up to over fifty kilometres per hour.

"Chief? Enemy contact spotted, about two kilometres away," came Kelly's voice over the com-link.

* * *

The Marine structure was revised after the war. The most basic unit was a fire-team, consisting of ten Marines. A fire-team was armed with weapons of every type for every situation. Every fire-team was given a name and a number. Right now Fire Team Alpha 2 was scouting out a cave. Their Sergeant was out in front with a shotgun.

"Hey Sarge, you see anything?" a private near the back asked.

"Shut your trap, private, before they here you. I know this is a simulation, but we got to leave and impression. Anyway, we're going to be shipping out soon, and we haven't exactly had dirt under our feet for a while, anyway. So shut your mouth," replied the Sergeant.

They kept moving, until they saw the Troopers ahead.

"Enemy contacts! Fire at will!" shouted the Sergeant. Two seconds later all the Marines were firing down the tunnel. Most of the Marines had Battle Rifles set on automatic, and were simply spraying down the tunnel. Three of his Marines went down in the enemy return fire.

The Sergeant crouched down and started firing. He used the scope of the rifle to zoom in and pick a few off. However, they kept on coming. He keyed his com-link. "This is Fire-team Alpha 2! We are under attack. Thirty percent casualties! We need support, now!" the Sergeant fired at a soldier who had charged up.

The response came quick. "Alpha 2, Bravo 4 is en route. Hang in there." The link cut off.

* * *

Outside, a big 'battle' was being fought. The Stormtroopers and Troopers were rushing against the UCNC lines. The Grunts, Elites and Marines were dug in trenches, and had machine guns set up. The Field Master had set up the machine guns so that they had an overlapping field of fire, and the Marines with LMGs were at the front, prone so that they added more firepower to the defensive ranks.

The rest were behind them, so the machine guns had a clear view. Already many of the machine gun barrels were glowing red from the amount of bullets they spat out. The Alliance soldiers were now to dug in, firing at the UCNC lines. The Field Master sent a message to the Spartans. "Spartans! Move to co-ordinates provided, and fire upon the enemy flanks!"

"Affirmative. Spartan-117out." The COM clicked off.

The Field Master ran to the front most trenches, grabbing a Carbine on the way, and pushed in a clip for it. Once there, he shouted, "Fall back! Wait until they break formation first!"

Soon enough, streaks of smoke were making their way towards the Alliance lines, and fire erupted from the explosions. More explosions on a smaller scale also blossomed from multiple grenade explosions, hand-held and launched. The confusion caused by the explosions that continued allowed for the escape of the Marines and Elites in the front trenches.

"Leave the mounted machine guns!" shouted the Field Master. "Just bring the ammunition, and the ordinance!" The soldiers all scrambled to get out everything needed before the Alliance got oriented. Meanwhile the Field Master remained in the trench, organizing the ones who needed help.

At last, the trenches were evacuated, and everyone was back into the trenches further behind. The Field Master was just finishing off a squad of Stormtroopers who were overambitious when the group of Spartans made it back. "Welcome back," greeted the Field Master. "Quite a show you put up. Fall back to the other trenches." They simply nodded.

* * *

By now the battle had degraded to a few soldiers per side, and it appeared that the Alliance had more soldiers than the UCNC. The Field Master was still there, as were the Spartans. Fire Teams Alpha 2 and Bravo 4 had gotten out of the tunnels alive, and had joined the main UCNC force. Most of the UCNC soldiers were 'killed' when a group of SpecForce soldiers with explosives dug underneath a trench and setted time bombs. When the bombs had gone off, three trenches had collasped. The Spartans shot up the SpecForce group when they poked their heads out of the hole, most likely to throw even more explosives into the UCNC lines.

Finally, the Alliance decided to end the simulation when the remaining soldiers charged at the UCNC lines. "Launch the missiles!" shouted the Field Master in return. All the remaining soldiers with Jackhammer Launchers launched rockets at the near solid wall of Stormtroopers and Troopers. The rockets blasted holes in the wall, and the second volley was enough to wipe out half the attackers. The rest were promptly gunned down.

The battlefield, with the smoking craters and trenches, started to disappear. All of the soldiers were standing there, intact, and armour just as pristine as it was before the simulation. Pellaeon walked up. "Your soldiers are to be commended," he said to the Arbiter as soon as the Arbiter was there. "With your help, this war is going to turn soon, I can feel it. I think we can get your soldiers some action by tomorrow. Better get them ready, eh?"

"Of course. By tomorrow, I think about three companies of soldiers, and at least two armoured divisions should be ready for action. I hope that is enough for a few planets. The Spartans should be ready. We probably have to split them up. If the CIS use mindless automatons, one Spartan could probably blow apart whole armies. Also, there are our SpecOps Elites, who are highly trained commandoes. I think this will bolster your forces," said the Arbiter.

"Of course. Now, I think you need to get them ready. It's going to be a long day tomorrow."

* * *

That night, aboard the _Divine Blade_, the three un-injured Spartans were lounging around in their shared quarters when the Arbiter stepped through the door. All three instantly saluted when he stepped through. He nodded and said "At ease." He sat himself down, and started to speak.

"Spartans, you will be shipped out in the morning at 0800. However, I'm afraid that you will have to be split up, mainly due to the lack of your numbers. I'll give you your assignments tomorrow. Good luck, and make us proud." All of them nodded. The Arbiter then walked out the door, and they all sat down.

"Guess this is the last time we'll be together for a while," said Kelly. John and Fred nodded solemnly.

"Hey, at least we're not on the verge of annihilation. And besides, we're Spartans. What could go wrong?" asked Fred.

"That's what you said at Reach. And also, try not to say that-it seems to be bad luck," said Kelly.

"Hey, it only happened once. You can't prove anything from something that happened just once," argued Fred.

"Alright, that's enough. Come on, get some sleep. I got that feeling that this is the last time we'll get proper sleep for a long time," John said. Kelly and Fred ceased arguing, and climbed into their bunks.

"What do you think the enemy would be like?" Fred asked, his voice full of anticipation. Spartans weren't created to lounge around doing nothing. They were meant for war, something that they hadn't seen for quite a few months now, not counting the skirmish on Dac.

"I'm not sure. Hey, they can't be that harder than the Covenant, so it might be even easy," said Kelly.

"Maybe. Then again, war is full of surprises," said John.

Some of their theories might be right. However, the banter, and the chat they had with Linda was a relief to John. It meant that his team-mates were ready, and that they would be one hundred percent efficient for the battle tomorrow. It also meant that their grief from losing Will was passing. It was there in all those battles, but they never really remembered it in the heat of battle.

* * *

The next morning, the three Spartans stood in one of the many launch bays on the _Divine Blade_. There were Pelicans and Phantoms everywhere, and Marines, Elites, Grunts and Hunters were gathering around the ships. The Pelicans and Phantoms were meant for taking the UCNC soldiers to other ships for battle, as the _Divine Blade_ had the greatest amount of soldiers.

The _Divine Blade_ was to take part in the battle for Cato Neimoidia. This was the furthest place that the CIS had pushed to, and the Alliance wanted it back. As the Arbiter sat in his chair, he read the report that the Alliance Intelligence had composed. Apparently, the world was the base of the now defunct Trade Federation.

Being a CIS supporter during the Clone Wars, the world had left behind numerous droid factories, something that the Alliance had no wish for the CIS to gain. So they had a small fleet there, not more than one hundred ships, but enough to make anyone to think twice before attacking the planet. _Almost_ anyone. It seemed that the CIS had launched a massive assault, seizing control in little over a day.

Already, an enormous CIS fleet orbited the planet, as well as most likely millions of battle droids. With that in mind, as well as the fact that most of the droids were in the clustered bridge cities, he decided to assign Spartan-104, or Fred, to the operation. Also, SpecOps Team 8 would be there. "Cortana?" he asked.

"Yes? What is it?" she said in response.

"Compile a report concerning the battle, along with all relevant information, and send it to all the commanding officers in this battle. Tell them to share the information with the troops. I want them to know how the situation is."

"Already on it."

"Good."

Fred shook John's hand, as well as Kelly's, before they left. He was to stay here, and to get ready for combat. The deck shifted a bit, and the Divine Blade entered Slipspace, along with a flotilla of Alliance and UCNC warships. He then read the report while walking to the armoury. "Hmmm, close quarters combat to be expected for a large majority of the battle. Good, it's been a while since I had proper urban warfare. Better get ready," he said to himself. He reached the armoury, and greeted the soldiers he met on the way with a nod.

Once inside the armoury, which had more than a few soldiers inside gearing up, he settled down on the bench. He grabbed a Shotgun, as well as a pair of M9 SMG's. Almost immediately after the majority of the Brute was destroyed, the then UNSC revised a number of its weapons, particularly the SMG. It was incapable of doing large amount of damage, and its accuracy, as well as the power of the bullet dropped significantly after fifteen metres. The new M9 SMG fired a 9mm bullet, almost twice the width of the bullet the M7 fired. Also, the barrel was longer, and the stock was able to fold, reducing size. However, the magazine size was reduced to forty rounds per clip, mostly because the bullet was larger.

It was much more effective than the M7 at close range, mainly because its rounds were larger and had more punching power. Also, it fired slower than the M7, though it gave it more accuracy.

After clipping them to his magnetic holders, he grabbed an Energy Sword as well. They were absolutely devastating, and Fred had gotten hold of a few skills off some of the Elites. Also, in case of a target further away, he slung a Battle Rifle over his shoulder. He then opened his backpack, and filled it with ration bars, some medical equipment and a whole lot of ammo. Once it was filled, Fred attached it to his back, before walking out armoury, nodding at the soldiers inside.

* * *

In Launch Bay 4, where Fred's Pelican dropship was waiting, was a storm of chaos. Humans and aliens were running around to their dropships in streams, and once there, climbed in and waited. As Fred walked to his dropship, the soldiers made a wide berth to avoid getting in his way. He reached the Pelican, and climbed inside. Settling himself as near as possible to the open end, he watched the chaos reign. He viewed the uniforms that the Marines already onboard were wearing.

The uniform looked exactly like the uniform the Marines on Earth wore, except for one thing-the suits had shielding. It wasn't very strong, only able to handle a few bursts from a Battle Rifle, but it let them live that much longer. Also, a holographic projector mounted on a small screen enabled them to see the battlefield, and the position of squad mates. The projector screen was mounted on a small 'arm' which could be folded back, to give more room to see.

The Marines were holding Battle Rifles, and had a pistol strapped to the upper part of their leg for easy removal. The power for the shield was generated by the smallest of generators, big enough to fit in a small pack, which was on their backs. There was enough room to contain ammunition, supplies and other gear.

A team of navy engineers ran up to the Pelican, and refuelled it. Another team checked the thrusters, to make sure that there was nothing wrong with it. Throughout the bay, Fred could see even more teams doing the same to the other Pelicans and Phantoms. His mission clock stated that over an hour had passed, despite being what seemed like only a few minutes to Fred.

An alarm klaxon wailed, and the engineers poked his head into the passenger bay, gave a thumbs up to the pilot, closed the ramp and then walked off.

"Close the airlock!" shouted the pilot, now having checked all the electronics. Fred stood up, and pressed a few buttons. The light on top of the closed ramp blinked red, signalling the airlock was closed. There was nothing left to do until the order to launch was given.

* * *

On the bridge, the Arbiter was watching the main view screen seemingly unconcerned. They were going to exit Slipspace soon, and then, the first f many battles will be fought by the combined forces of the Grand Alliance and the UCNC. "Exiting Slipspace in five, four, three, two, one, now," said Cortana. The inky blackness of Slipspace disappeared to reveal a planet with over five hundred skeletal warships in orbit.

"Cortana, are all of our ships here?" he asked. Truthfully, not all of their ships were here. The Fleet of Retribution was split into multiple battle groups, each sent to different planets, to help their Alliance allies battling there. All over the battles now happening, UCNC ships appeared, and went to engage the CIS ships.

It was now official: the UCNC had entered the fray.

* * *

(A.N: Well, what do you think? I know it is probably not the best I have typed up yet, but in the next chapter, Fred will do battle! Also, sorry if the Spartans were a bit out of character, but think of it this way-has anyone written about how the Spartans when they were not in battle, or when one team mate was wounded but still conscious? And sorry for skipping out on so much stuff, it would have taken forever to type up. So anyway, still sorry, read and review, and 'till next time!) 


	10. The Battle for Cato Neimoidia:Landings

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Well, back again for more! Anyway, yes! Double digits! Never thought I would get this far. Now, to clear even more things up, when referring to the UCNC ships, when I type Covenant, it means the ships that the Covenant used. Human ships refer to the ships that the UNSC used in the Covenant War. Alright, that's all I have to say, and enjoy this chapter!)

Reviews:

Star wars 2136: Thanks buddy. And of course AT ATs will make it. It's the only thing that could be on par to the Scarab! What's a fic with Star Wars without AT ATs? It'll make appearances later on in the story. Keep the reviews coming mate!

Smokin' Tacos: Thanks buddy. I will finish this story eventually.

brian: Humph. God Mode does not concern me. You forgot, that in this fanfic, I _am_ God! Well, apart from that, if Spartan Threes are going to be included, well, that's a mystery for you to find out and me to know!

Kavek: Thanks. I'll see what I can do in the future. You brought up some pretty good points there, actually. As for the shields, what they are based on seems to be absorption of energy, and radiating it out. Everything has energy, whether it be heat or kinetic. Still, if you can find the site where it says what Star Wars shields are based on, please tell me. Also, it is pretty hard to feel sorry for something that is ninety percent metal, and can only comprehend orders. About the Elite, Grunt Hunter thing, that will be explained soon, my friend. You just have to wait and see. Still, you can't have some fun without bending the rules, eh? Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.

Disclaimer:

Star Wars does not belong to me, or anyone else except for George Lucas for that matter. Halo does not belong to me, or anyone else except for Bungie for that matter.

* * *

Chapter 10: The Battle for Cato Neimoidia: The Landings

As soon as the flotilla of ships dropped out of Hyperspace and Slipspace, the skeletal fleet of CIS ships moved to engage. The Arbiter, from his post on the bridge, was watching the CIS fleet move in to wipe out the intruders. "Cortana, are there any planetary shields protecting that planet?" he asked.

Cortana's figure frowned for a moment, before announcing "No there isn't. If there are anti-air guns on the planet, that's a completely different matter."

"Very well, tell the pilots that heavy anti-air fire is to be expected. Now, charge the guns," he ordered.

The fleet of two hundred and fifty ships made up of various ships started to spread out to lessen the prospect of a collision should a ship veer out of control. By now, the CIS fleet was in range for the Plasma Lances, as well as the Energy Projectors. "Cortana, fire Plasma Lance seven to five, and fourteen to twelve," he ordered. Six bright red streams of plasma lashed out towards the incoming fleet. Six hits, and six _Recusant_-class destroyers went up in flames, the plasma having smashed through their shields, and melted half the decks.

"Fire the Energy Projectors," the Arbiter ordered. A pair of needle thin, whitish blue beams struck out. The first beam hit a _Munificent_-class frigate. Its shields held out for a split second before giving way to the beam. It then punched straight through the vessel; hit the reactor, before passing through and tearing apart the vessels behind. The _Munificent _detonated in a fireball that could be seen from the planet's surface. Two beams, eight vessels turned into smouldering wrecks.

Following the _Divine Blade_'s example, the rest of the fleet fired. A firestorm of plasma, MAC rounds, turbolasers and proton torpedoes hammered the CIS fleet. Many of the weapons hit random vessels, and the turbolasers had to be concentrated on a single target to be effective. Still, many CIS ships went up in flames, with some outright exploding.

By now, the CIS fleet was upon them, and the battle was on. The Arbiter viewed the screen carefully. "Fire Plasma Torpedoes one and two at this ship here," he ordered. The pair of Plasma Torpedoes hit the _Recusant_, and destroyed it.

"Enemy single-fighters are launching," Cortana informed him.

"Very well. Launch Longsword wings A to C, as well as Seraph wings one to four," barked the Arbiter. He could see the ships leaving the launch bays and moving to engage the incoming starfighters. From the tactical map, he could see the Alliance starfighters moving to intercept the droid Starfighters, and the Tri-Fighters.

"Cortana, take control of the point-defence system. Leave the weapon controls to the weapons console," he ordered. Cortana complied, and the autocannons, as well as the point-defence pulse lasers went to work. One Droid Starfighter was hit by a pulse laser, and was cut in two. Another went down after a hail of autocannon rounds tore it to pieces. The fighters were a serious concern. If they were still there when the dropships were launched, a serious dent could be placed in the ground operation.

All around the _Divine Blade_, chaos reigned. Ships were everywhere, as were lifeless wrecks. Individual dogfights were happening everywhere, over a capital ship, through the maze of hulks, in empty space and even weaving through the skeletal CIS ships.

* * *

Major Thomas Eisler was having a hell of a day. His wing of Longswords had been dogfighting the enemy fighters nearly since the whole battle began. The Longsword Mk.2 he was piloting was an upgrade of the old, standard Longsword. It needed only one pilot, the length and width was reduced, but it sported a bigger armament. It had the standard pair of a hundred and twenty millimetre rotary cannons, and hardpoints for multiple missiles, bombs or anything else, really. They also sported a pair of plasma cannons to boot as well.

Major Eisler pulled his Longsword into a steep dive, and the pair of fighters did the same. He grinned, and pulled back on the joystick. Hard. The Longsword flipped up, performed a loop, and he ended up behind the pair. Instead of locking on with missiles, he lined them up with his gunsights, and pulled the trigger. A hail of a hundred and twenty millimetre shells tore into them, blew holes in the armour, and detonated their reactors and fuel supply, as well as any ammunition within. The pair of explosions didn't look out of place with hundreds of other explosions going off all around him. He flew back towards the main battle, eager to rejoin his squadron.

Once at the main battle, he ordered "Seraph one eight seven and one eight eight, form up on my left flank. Bravo two six eight and Bravo two eight seven, form up on my right flank." There was a chorus of 'roger's and 'affirmatives. A pair of Seraphs formed up on his left flank. A second after, a pair of Longswords formed up on his right flank. There was a wing of five Droid HMP going on bombing runs, all of them in an arrow formation, and his flight was going after them to put an end of their fun.

"Alright boys, we're going after those bombers. Ready ASGM-10 missiles and plasma torpedoes. Lock on and report when done."

"This is Bravo Two Six Eight, ASGM locked and ready."

"Seraph One Eight Seven, plasma torpedo is charged and locked on."

"Bravo Two Eight Seven, missile ready."

"Seraph One Eight Eight, plasma torpedo ready."

"Alright boys, on my mark, fire the missile. Mark!"

Three missiles and a pair of plasma torpedoes shot forward, and headed for the HMPs. Four immediately turned into a sun, and the last one was severely crippled, with half of it blown away. Seraph One Eight Seven blasted it with the twin plasma cannons, and reduced the remains to a wreck.

"Good job gentlemen, let's go!" Eisler shouted. The Longswords and Seraphs peeled off. He went back to chase down another fighter. A normal day for a pilot.

* * *

On the bridge of the _Divine Blade_, it was hardly normal. There were officers running around, directing orders or carrying out orders. Throughout it all, the Arbiter was standing, and leaning on a rail, as his chair was located on the elevated part of the bridge, which was at the back. The ship rumbled as it took another barrage of turbolaser fire from an attack group of five _Recusants_, backed by a _Providence_-class destroyer, which the Arbiter though that the term 'battleship' would have been more appropriate.

"Weapons, please do something against the battle group attacking us, would you?" he asked. The officer, an Elite wearing the bright red armour of a pilot, by the name of 'Nheamee nodded nervously.

"Y-Yes, of c-course your Excellency," he stammered. "Tell the missile turret crews to load the Infernos, and fire at the _Recusants_ when their shields have been knocked out by the pulse lasers. Pulse lasers, target the closest _Recusant_ and fire when fully charged. When the shields have been knocked out, target the next one. Energy Projectors, fire at the _Providence_."

The Arbiter listened to the weapons officer's plan, and found it to be quite good. The Infernos were missiles that had a payload of superheated, sticky plasma. Upon contact, the plasma burst over the target, and started to burn, melting through armour, and chewing away. Being plasma, it needed no oxygen to burn, so it was effective at everything but starfighter defence.

The plan worked, and the Arbiter watched as the missiles soared towards the shield-less _Recusant_. The missiles hit, and the blue plasma flared up, and started to melt its way through. By sheer luck, one missile hit the _Recusant_'s main turbolaser on the prow, and started to melt through as well. He could almost imagine the crew panicking as the starboard engine detonated, followed by the others. By now, the second and third _Recusant_ was covered in plasma, and the _Providence_ had twin holes from bow to stern, and was drifting. It would be no threat. The other two _Recusants_ were now fleeing, having seen what happened to the other three.

"Excellent work, 'Nheamee. Let's get back into this. Cortana, what is our shield strength?" he asked.

"Our shields are at eighty six percent. Also, our reactors are running normally well within functional and safety parameters. We have twenty Infernos left, and Archer pods are still full. The _Divine Blade_ is performing extremely well for its first _real_ engagement on a large scale. The _Archway_ is still in good condition, with minimal damage," Cortana reported.

The _Archway_ was a carrier, a human one, that held all the dropships meant for the ground operation, except for those in the _Divine Blade_. The dropships had been transferred just before the fleet made the collective jump to the planet. The _Archway_ had remained at the very edge of the battle to protect her precious cargo. It was the _Divine Blade_ and other ships job to clear a path for her.

The _Divine Blade_ remained at the centre of the battle, spewing plasma and projectiles at any CIS ship that got too close, or was unfortunate enough to be targeted. Finally, after many losses on both sides, a path was cleared, and the _Archway_ accelerated forward with the Divine Blade. The two ships made a beeline for the planet, with the _Divine Blade_ blasting anything that got into its way, as the carrier had the majority of the Marines, Elites, Grunts and Hunters.

When the two ships were in orbit, the dropships of the first wave started to pour out of the _Archway_. On the _Divine Blade_, klaxons started to blare, and Cortana's voice echoed throughout the launch bays. "All personnel, evacuate the launch bays. Dropships, launch will commence in T minus one minute. Repeat. All personnel evacuate the launch bay. Launch will commence in T minus fifty five seconds. Decompression commencing in launch bays. All personnel, evacuate the launch bay."

The ground assault was organized in about five attack waves of approximately fifty soldiers each. The first wave, which included Fred, would secure a LZ for the other waves, and start to push forward. The other waves would then arrive to relieve the first wave, who would have hopefully information on the enemy strongholds. Essentially, the first wave was the reconnaissance wave, while the others did battle after the recon was finished. The first wave will then attack the city like the other waves.

* * *

On Fred's Pelican, he checked to make sure the airlock was secure. The pilot's voice came over. "Marines, strap yourselves in. We launch in ten seconds. Enemy AA is expected, so the ride will be a bit bumpy. Please do not move around the cabin when launching, as injuries can occur."

Ten seconds later, there was a rumble as the Pelican's jets fired up, and lifted it above the deck. The shield covering the launch bay disappeared, and the Pelicans and Phantoms were free to go. A burst of acceleration pushed Fred and the Marines back as the Pelican left the bay, and into the blackness. Along with them were other Pelicans and Phantoms. A wing of Longswords launched from the Archway, and the _Divine Blade_ released multiple black capsules that fell towards the planet.

Once in the atmosphere, the black capsules burst apart to reveal a SkyHawk fighter. The SkyHawks flew down to find potential landing sites for the troops. One, Echo 498 found one. "_Divine Blade_, this is Echo Four Nine Eight, I've found an LZ, over."

"Echo Four Nine Eight, LZ looks good. Transmit co-ordinates of the LZ to the pilots. Clear it of any hostiles. _Divine Blade_ out."

Echo 498 shouted into her mic "SkyHawks, form up on me. We're clearing an LZ for the dropships!" A chorus of 'roger' came over, and so did the SkyHawks.

"Arm the Hornets and Anvils, people. We're going to make two passes, then strafe the area with your cannons. Let's go!"

The Hornets were air-to-ground missiles designed for taking out bunkers or fortifications. They also were great at blowing away hostiles on the ground. However, they lacked the homing feature of other missiles, such as the ASGM-10. Each SkyHawk carried four, and they were going to make good use out of them.

The LZ found was a landing platform, which could easily fit ten landed Pelicans, or five Albatrosses. Apparently, it was an important site, as it had eight AA guns protecting it from any attack from the air, or any insertion as well. The first SkyHawk launched two Hornets before an anti-air gun scored a few hits, causing it to lose control and crash into the LZ.

"Watch out, people. Those emplacements seem to be pretty darn powerful. Lock on the Vipers and let 'em loose!"

Multiple streaks left the SkyHawks, and headed towards the AA emplacements. It only took one good hit to turn it into rubble, and by the time the SkyHawks had screamed past and banked for another run, they were all gone. The SkyHawks then fired their Hornets at the platform, clearing away the rest of the droids in a series of explosions.

"All right people, we now have to provide air support for the ground pounders. If you need to rearm, the _Archway_ is on station in orbit. Beware of AA around the city. Good luck, people. Echo Four Nine Eight out."

* * *

The dropships had now entered the atmosphere, so Fred was able to open the airlock as well as the ramp. The ramp was retractable, so it wouldn't create more drag. Fred looked out through the open bay, and was also listening to the Sergeant instructing his team.

"Marines, it is our job to get down there, and clean it up for our new allies. It is so simple; a kid could do it in less than an hour. Our forces are going to be the first there, so let's show 'em how it's done, alright? We're gonna be the first to hit the dirt in front and before most of our Covenant buddies and some of our fellow ground pounders," at this he shrugged, "No biggie though, it just means more of the shiny bastards for us to kill."

He placed his hand over his earbud, listening to the pilot speaking. "Alright Marines, ten seconds till we hit the ground. Let's show the Spartan how the Marines do, shall we?" Still, the comment was just some talk, as most of the troops revere the Spartans. Fred almost smiled beneath his helmet at the comment.

Fred then saw the ground flash pass as the pilot swung the Pelican around so that the disembarking troops wouldn't get hit the blaster fire. The Phantoms that came next blasted the ground ahead with plasma fire, since the Phantom had no need to land. As soon as the Pelican was only a few centimetres off the ground, Fred hit the switch which extended the ramp. He ran down, even as the Sergeant's voice was shouting "Go, go, go!"

The Marines ran down after him, but by then, Fred had cleared the rest of the droids that had survived. To him, they weren't that tough, and the blaster did as much damage as a Plasma Rifle shot. The droids weren't the best shots either, so it was somewhat easy. After reloading, he climbed up to the highest point of one of the most intact pad, and magnified his view to the end of the one bridge that led here-a potential chokepoint for either side. The new Mk. VII armour that the surviving Spartans had received could zoom in up to 5x the normal view.

What he saw were many squads of droids advancing slowly up to the other end of the bridge, before moving across. "Lt. Tanner? We've got company. Over three hundred droids are advancing on our position. I recommend stopping the other waves from landing until we hold the entire bridge," he told the Lieutenant in charge of the first wave. The response was immediate.

Lt. Tanner was talking to one of the pilots when he received the transmission. He pulled the viewscreen over his eye, and then magnified the image at the end of the bridge. The Spartan wasn't lying. "Good work Spartan. I tell the pilots to relay that message. Now, take a squad and try to buy us sometime, if you can. Tanner out."

The Spartan ran up to the congregation of soldiers. "I need ten volunteers!" he shouted. Five Marines immediately did so, as did three Elites and two Grunts. Hunters were coming down on the next wave, so he had to do without them for the time being. "Grab some heavy weapons, a lot of grenades and follow me!" Fred shouted they did so, and then thundered down to their end of the bridge with the Spartan.

Fred raised a fist, motioning to them to stop. They did so, and crept up next to him. Both of the Grunts had Fuel Rods, as did the Elites. "Aim the Fuel Rods at a 45 degree angle. It should be able to hit the force on the other side. Marines, follow me," Fred whispered. The Grunts and the Elites aimed, and fired. Five green orbs of destructive energy arced their way across the bridge. They impacted, and sent metal parts flying everywhere.

The rain of energy orbs continued even as Fred and the Marines ran across the bridge. "Marines, set up there," said Fred, pointing to a fallen pole that could hide most of a Marine's body, even when standing upright. The Marines did so, and once there, fired rockets into the crowd. Fred ran over to the Marines, and held out his hand. "I need some grenades!" he shouted over the roar of a rocket launching. A Marine handed him some frag grenades and some HE grenades. "Thanks, soldier," shouted Fred.

He ran as close as he dared to the droid lines, and knelt down. He grabbed some wire he kept with him, mainly for strangulation purposes, and pulled it into sections. He tied one end to the pin, and used some all-purpose duct tape to tape the grenade to anything close enough, even as rockets and Fuel Rods impacted into the droids. He continued to do the same thing over and over again, until he used up all of the grenades. He called the volunteers. "Fall back! We're done here!"

With that, he ran down back to their end of the bridge, and to the landing platform. He kept on running, even as blaster bolts flew around him, sometimes striking him and bringing down his shield's integrity a bit. When he was back, the defences were more than ready. Four portable Plasma Cannons were set up, with two on either side of the bridge. A pair of portable M247 machine guns were set up as well. They were all ready manned, and the rest of the soldiers were ready behind the turrets. Fred walked up to Lt. Tanner, and saluted.

"Sir! Objective completed," he said. Tanner nodded.

"Good work. We'll need every droid to be scrap heaps before the rest of the assault force arrives. Have you used up all the grenades you took?" he asked.

"Yes sir. They were left behind as a welcoming present for the first line of droids."

"Excellent. Alright, take your place in the lines, Spartan. Everyone, listen up!" Lt. Tanner shouted. "No-one fires until you see an explosion within their ranks. When that explosion occurs, fire at will!" he ordered.

The Marines started to check their rifles and SMGs, making sure the magazine was full. The Elites made sure that the clip in their Carbines were secure, and that they were full. Several Marines pulled their viewscreens across their eye, and magnified the image of the approaching droids. The viewscreen highlighted the grenade traps in a red box, and the distance from it and the approaching droids. When the counter reached less than twenty metres, the Marines with the viewscreens over their eye raised their weapons. When the explosion occurred, all hell broke loose.

* * *

In orbit around Cato Neimoidia, the _Archway_ was receiving the last of the Pelicans and Phantoms. An _Endurance_ carrier, the _Intrepid_, was waiting nearby to release its own contingent of dropships. The main reason for waiting until a landing zone was cleared and ready, was because the Alliance had lost many soldiers during the conflict, and now that the primary supplier of clones for Stormtroopers was lost, the situation had degraded extremely quickly.

Just as the last of the dropships were received, a pair of _Recusants_, backed by a _Munificent_ made a beeline for the carriers. Apparently, they had found out that the _Archway_ was the home of most of the ground force, as well as the _Intrepid_. Even as the _Archway_ turned to engage the three, the _Intrepid_ was lighting up, with all twelve turbolasers firing. The captain of the _Archway_, Captain Alvani, was greatly distressed. The carrier was not built for combat, and it still had hundreds of soldiers waiting to be deployed.

"Communications, send out a message to the _Divine Blade_. Tell them that we need immediate assistance. We have three vessels bearing down on us, and we will need help if these troops are going to make it to the surface in one piece. Weapons, charge up all MAC guns, ready Archer pods. We're going to give those bastards a hell of a fight," ordered Captain Alvani.

The _Archway_ was a not a typical carrier. Most human carriers typically had one MAC gun, and about thirty Archer pods. However, the Archway had a pair MAC guns as well as over fifty Archer pods. The MAC guns were the same Triple MAC guns used on the _Pillar of Autumn_, now standard among most ships. The _Archway_ also held three nuclear warheads within her significant arsenal.

"Weapons, status of the MAC guns?" asked Captain Alvani with sweat dripping off his brow.

"MAC guns at ninety seven, ninety eight, ninety nine, they're at full charge!" he almost shouted.

The pair of _Recusants_ suddenly veered off in different directions, one heading for the _Archway_, the other towards the _Intrepid_. The _Munificent_ lagged behind, before coming to a complete stop just outside the pair of carrier's maximum weapons range. It was pretty obvious that the _Munificent_ was intending to become a gun platform, to pound the pair of motherships after the _Recusants_ did the grunt work.

The _Recusant_ that was attacking the _Intrepid_ was now exchanging broadsides of turbolaser fire with the carrier, and the _Intrepid_ was winning, barely. The one that was heading for the _Archway_ made one mistake-it turned to the left, to help the other _Recusant_, presenting a bigger target for the _Archway_.

"Fire MAC One," ordered Captain Alvani.

The MAC gun on the left flashed three times, and three projectiles tore out of the weapon, heading for the _Recusant_ that was now attempting to turn back. The first two projectiles impacted and shattered the shield, but no further damage was done. The third one gave much better results. The round punched straight through the first engine, and still had enough force to continue onwards to shear off the other engine adjacent to the one that was just torn off.

Without the balance provided from the other two and the remaining engine still burning, the force pushed the _Recusant_ 'down'. The _Recusant_ could be counted as disabled, as there was no way for it to propel itself back into battle.

"Good job. Rotate us so that we are facing the other _Recusant_, Lt. Ambridge," ordered Captain Alvani.

The engines fired, and the _Archway_ turned so that the other MAC gun ready to fire was facing the _Recusant_ doing battle with the _Intrepid_. The _Recusant_ was potted with holes all over its hull, and whole sections of armour plating were ripped off.

However, the _Intrepid_ was just as good looking. Three of the turbolasers were destroyed, and the shields had failed, though the strong hull was holding off the _Recusant_'s turbolaser barrages. The _Munificent_ was now pounding the _Intrepid_ with long-range turbolaser blasts from the prow cannon, breaking off pieces of the hull. Alvani could see the atmosphere leaving the ship, before the sections were sealed off.

"Guns, get a fire solution for the MAC gun and Archer pods, on the double," Captain Alvani ordered.

"Firing solution is online sir," reported the gunnery officer, exactly ten seconds after the order was issued.

"Fire on the _Recusant_, now!" barked Captain Alvani.

The fifteen Archer pods mounted on the prow of the _Archway_ fired, followed by the second MAC gun. The three projectiles flashed across space, before connecting with the _Recusant_. The trio of projectiles tore holes in the bow, and the swarm of missiles that came in after severely damaged the _Recusant_. The final barrage of turbolaser fire from the _Intrepid_ destroyed the ship.

"Good job men. Looks like we might live after al-"

A volley of laser fire knocked the captain to the deck. He cursed as he got up, wondering how he had forgotten about the _Munificent_.

"Status!" he shouted.

"Shields are down. Armour on section seven is down to three centimetres, the same in section five and eight!" shouted the damage control officer.

Captain Alvani started cursing. They had no weapons capable of destroying the _Munificent_ in time, and it was pounding them with the heavy turbolasers. It wouldn't take long for them and the _Intrepid_ to be destroyed.

Just as all hope seemed to be lost, a laser beam, whitish blue in colour flashed across space for no more than three seconds. After the beam faded, the _Munificent_ exploded in an explosion that made the others in the main battle seem insignificant. Captain Alvani blinked three times, and then checked to see if the Intrepid was still in one piece. It was.

"Lt. Ambridge, replay and slow down the destruction of the _Munificent_," Captain Alvani ordered. Something nagged at him from the back of his head, and he remembered why. Energy Projector beams never last for more than a single second, but this one had lasted for _three_.

"Done sir," Lt. Ambridge reported. The image played on the viewscreen. The beam flashed across space before hitting the _Munificent_. The beam then moved down, and literally sliced the vessel into two sections. The back part, with the engines still sputtering with life, rammed into the first section, which lacked any form of propulsion. The resulting explosion consumed both halves of the ship.

He looked at the spot where he thought the beam had originated from. He squinted, a saw a shadow within the darkness of space. It looked like a human prowler, but with a turret mounted on top. Suddenly, he realised what it was. One of the _Apparition_-class Prowlers, the assassins of the UCNC fleet. This one was shaped like the Sea Shadows of the age old US Navy, though they had a turret on top. The turret was the main weapon, firing the same beam that had sliced apart the _Munificent_. There were two different designs, a human, which resembled the Sea Shadow, and the Covenant design, which looked like a miniaturised _CCS_-Battlecruiser, but they performed the same function.

Alvani had no idea that they were operating here. From what he had read, there were only ten in existence, and all were based in the Sol system, patrolling for any intruders. Each one was captained by the most loyal of commanders, and they only followed the orders of the Admirals, or the Covenant equivalent.

"Alright, let's bring this ship back to orbit," Captain Alvani ordered. The battle had carried them away from their previous position in orbit, as they had begun evasive manoeuvres to avoid the _Recusants_. As they rumbled back to their position, the _Intrepid_ followed, with sections of the ship still ablaze.

* * *

As the final _Recusant_ exploded, the Arbiter viewed the site of the battle. Where once the proud and impressive five hundred strong fleet of the CIS that had defended the planet, there was now a five hundred ship strong graveyard. Wrecks floated around, some half-melted, some in pieces. That was not to say that there wasn't a graveyard for the Alliance fleet as well.

Over sixty Alliance ships were hulks, destroyed by turbolaser and proton torpedo fire. Of the fifty UCNC ships that had joined the battle, twenty three were wrecks. Fifteen of the wrecks were human, as the human ship's shields were not nearly as strong as their Covenant counterparts. Eight of the hulks were Covenant, most of them frigates, but there were a few destroyers, and even a _CCS_-Battlecruiser was floating in there. Still their sacrifice was not in vain. All CIS ships were destroyed, and it was only a matter of time before the cities were taken.

"Alright, we're done here. Cortana, send a message to all surviving UCNC ships to form up on the _Divine Blade_, before we begin to search for survivors," he ordered. With the signal sent, the taskforce was just about to set out when the alarms started to blare.

"Cortana! What's happening?" he asked.

"Multiple CIS ships detected jumping into the system. I estimate there are over six hundred ships coming down on us. They will be within range in just over two minutes," she reported.

"Get me Captain Dentris," the Arbiter ordered. The captain's face soon appeared, with blood leaking out of a minor gash on his forehead. His ship, the MC90 Star Cruiser _Starfire_, was the flagship of the Alliance fleet, but had taken a beating from many turbolaser impacts, particularly from the heavy turbolaser cannons of the _Recusant_s.

"Yes, Arbiter?" he said.

"There is a fleet of over six hundred CIS ships coming this way. I recommend preparing your fleet for even more combat. We have less than two minutes, Captain," the Arbiter said before closing the link.

By the time one minute had passed, the Alliance ships were grouped together, as were the UCNC ships, who were facing the incoming fleet. Weapons were charged, and the majority of the UCNC ships fell behind, so that the _Divine Blade_'s sheer bulk and strength would take the majority of the hits, therefore, allowing more ships to survive.

Since the Plasma Lances, Plasma Torpedoes were positioned in a V shape, with the Lances on the _Divine Blade_, and the Torpedoes on the lateral lines, if the battlecarrier faced an opponent directly, almost all the weapons, save for the few hundred Archer pods, could target an opponent and fire.

The Alliance ships had the stronger vessels in the centre, with the frigates in front. By now, all crews were waiting for the inevitable contact, and possible destruction. A distress call had been sent out, but there was no reply, so the worst had to be prepared for. As soon as the CIS fleet was in firing range, the two commanders said the two words the initiated hell.

"Open fire!"

* * *

Down on the surface, Fred was faced with his own kind of hell-the droids had been constantly attacking, attempting to push them back and recapture the landing platform. Not on his watch, however. He leapt up on another fallen pillar, both SMGs in hand, and sprayed the tide of droids with plasma-enhanced lead. Droids fell under the accurate barrage of fire, and after both SMGs clicked empty, he leapt back down to reload. All the while, laser bolts whizzed past him, and the Marines, Elites and Grunts answered with far more accurate volleys.

Fred, after reloading ran back to the mouth of the bridge, where the gunners held back the majority of the droids with streams of plasma and metal. A large pile of droid parts lay pat them, signs of the sheer determination of the droids. He started firing at the droids, and with his appearance, the soldiers at the front rallied, and started to fight, their morale soaring through the roof. A Marine's SMG clicked empty, and he shouted, "I'm out!" Fred tossed him a full one.

"Here! Make those shots count!" he shouted back over the roar of the cannons and machine guns.

"Thank you sir! I will!" he shouted, before reloading and firing the weapon. Fred resumed firing, occasionally lobbing a grenade. He lined the reticule on his HUD up with a droid that was too close for comfort, and fired. The droid collapsed under the volume of bullets that filled it up. With that threat ended, he raked his SMGs over the still coming droids.

By now, fifteen soldiers were dead, and the droids showed no signs of stopping. A blaster bolt hit the Marine next to him, scorching his arm. The Marine fell with a scream, holding his injured arm. Fred sprayed the offending droid with bullets before applying a spray of biofoam. He waved a pair of Grunts over. "Hey, you two! Come over here!" he shouted, and they complied.

"What you want us to do?" one of the Grunt's asked.

"Take this man to the back, where the other injured are. Go now!" he shouted. The Grunts picked up the Marine, and proceeded to waddle off with the Marine on their shoulders. With that burden off _his_ shoulders, he proceeded to continue to wipe out droids. He blasted one, before turning the SMGs onto another unlucky droid. As soon as they hit empty, he smoothly reloaded. However, it was a bit more hairy than the last time he had reloaded. The clip in both SMGs was the last he had, meaning he had expended over three hundred bullets, though he had destroyed close to a hundred droids.

The second he got up, a droid loomed over him. Before it could fire a streak of green light took its head off. Fred gave a 'thanks' to the Elite that had shot the droid. He merely nodded, before setting off more Carbine rounds into the droid ranks. Fred stepped up, and resumed firing. Droid after droid continued to fall under his fire, as well as all the other Battle Rifles, SMGs, Plasma Rifles, Carbines and even a few heavier weapons. He estimated that no more than a hundred droids remained, but still, a hundred droids could overwhelm them easily.

Soon, his SMGs ran dry, and he had no more SMG ammo. "I'm out!" he shouted. A Marine private ran up to him.

"Here you go, sir!" the Private shouted, before handing over four SMG clips. Fred nodded gratefully, and the Marine scampered back to his place. Fred pocketed two, and then reloaded the twins. Feeling more confident now that he had more ammunition, he continued to lay waste to the droids. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the droids began to pull back. Just as the fire on the droids was about to cease, Lt. Tanner's voice came over.

"No-one stops firing until I say so! What the hell are you doing soldier? Get back to doing what you are being paid to do!" he shouted. Immediately, the firing increased, and even more droids fell. After a few minutes, when only the snipers could fire at the droids, the Lieutenant's voice came over again.

"Cease fire. They're gone. Echo 498, this is Lt. Tanner requesting airstrike at co-ordinates three by four. Yes, I repeat, airstrike at co-ordinates three by four. No friendlies in range. Alright, Tanner out."

A minute later, two SkyHawks screamed past their head's, and unleashed at quartet of Hornets at the remaining droid forces. When the missiles exploded, sending spare parts flying into the sky, Fred could feel the ground rumble beneath his boots. He looked around. Out of the fifty that had landed, thirty one were still combat effective. Fifteen had been killed, and four injured. Considering what they had been facing, they had come out intact. The Marines had been smart enough to duck after each hit to let their shield recharge, which made sense of the fairly small amount of casualties.

His motion tracker showed many, many friendlies moving in-Pelicans, Phantoms, Albatrosses and _Sentinel_-class landing craft, which were certainly impressive. He watched as troops disembarked, and poured out, in particular the _Sentinel_s, mainly because they carried over fifty troops. Before long, the soldiers were all ready and itching for a fight. Several Pelicans unloaded boxes of ammunition, from which Fred grabbed more. Hefting the twins up, he accompanied the force moving up the bridge, and into the city.

The _real_ battle for Cato Nemoidia had begun.

* * *

(A.N: Phew. Three words: longest, chapter, ever! My fingers are still sore. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did typing it. Not much to say here. Reviews would make me very happy,  Okay, this might be the last update for quite some time. School is started, and it will get tough this year. Also, next, do you want me to start about the other battles, or continue with the Battle of Cato Nemoidia. Leave what you want in your review, please. So, enjoy!) 


	11. Battle of Cato Neimoidia: Occupation

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Umm, not much to say here, except that updates except that I'm really, really, really sorry about how long it took to get this out. Longer Author's Note at the bottom, so I'll keep this short. To avoid even more confusion, a lance is the Covenant equivalent of a fire-team. A Lance Team is a mixed team, with both Covenant and Marines in it. And apart from that, that's all I have to say! And, sorry for taking so long. So continue to enjoy!)

Reviews:

FAT DUDE: Thank you for the more, informative, review. In future, please keep them that way. Also, I never said I was perfect.

xChaosMagex: Thanks for the review. I don't think that the Alliance would want a weapon capable of destroying whole planets. Thanks for bringing that up, though!

Star wars 2136: Thanks for continually reviewing. Heh. The UCNC hasn't even encountered SBD's or Droidekas yet. So, don't you worry about that!

jedijaffa: I probably stated it before, but in case I haven't, then I apologize. A mistake on my behalf.

Disclaimer:

Star Wars, Halo and all of their respective media do not belong to me.

Chapter 11: Battle of Cato Neimoidia: Occupation

* * *

The storm of turbolasers and ion blasts dissipated against the shielding of the _Divine Blade_ without effect, save for rocking it to the left. Of the few bolts that went past, there wasn't enough and they weren't concentrated to do much damage against the UCNC ships. Immediately the UCNC ships moved from the cover of the _Divine Blade_ to fire at the CIS fleet. The Alliance fleet had avoided the barrage by splitting apart into two, and the void in between the two was filled up. 

The return volley from the UCNC and the Alliance had much of the same effect, except for the plasma torpedoes. The plasma torpedoes changed course, and destroyed the ships that got hit. Still, it wasn't enough to hold back the tide of CIS ships that swarmed to fill up the gaps created by the plasma torpedoes.

"Cortana, what is the status of our shields?" asked the Arbiter.

"Shields are at thirty seven percent. They are holding, for now. Another barrage like that and we will be in trouble," coolly replied Cortana.

"Then we shall destroy them before they get that chance," growled the Arbiter.

"Agreed." Was the simple answer from Cortana.

"Sir, we have a communication link from the _Starfire_," said the communications officer. A simple nod from the Arbiter was enough to get the officer, a human, to open the channel.

The face of Captain Dentris appeared on-screen. "Arbiter, I have ten ships that need to move closer in order to be effective. I request that you stay where you are currently, and provide them some cover. Your weapons are more effective at ranges than ours. Good luck, Arbiter." The link closed.

"Cortana, you heard the Captain. Order all UCNC ships to hold fire, and divert all power to charging all of the main weapons. No missiles or pulse lasers. Just MAC guns or plasma torpedoes, or if they have them, energy projectors, or plasma lances. All weapons are to target the front of the fleet. No-one fire before my command," ordered the Arbiter.

The rain of solid projectiles and plasma coming from the UCNC fleet stopped. The ships manoeuvred around to get a good, clear shot at the front of the CIS fleet. Cortana sent timers to the ships to co-ordinate their massed fire against the CIS to punch the hole that would reduce the amount of outgoing fire that would stop the surprise from the Alliance cold should most of the CIS line remain intact.

Before long, the timers hit zero, and massive amounts of fire flew towards the massed CIS fleet. The weapons hit just as the surprise was close enough to be wiped out by the frontal guns of the CIS fleet, but the wall of flame and solids disintegrated the ships at the front before they could begin wiping out the surprise.

Ships exploded violently as plasma melted through hull and flesh alike, reducing skeletal ships to wrecked husks, while the MAC rounds simply smashed straight through the weak shields and armour plating. Their burning hulks careened into other ships around them, sowing more chaos and destruction.

The Arbiter watched as one _Recusant_ with a hole straight through it smashed into the _Munificent_ next to it. The _Munificent_'s shields flared, but failed to stop the Recusant. The shielding failed, and the holed _Recusant_ collided with the bridge tower and rammed it straight off, essentially decapitating the ship. The wounded and uncontrollable _Munificent_ then rammed another _Munificent_ right alongside it. The explosions then disintegrated them both.

In the ensuing chaos, the surprise had made it to the CIS fleet. Ten automated GR-75 medium transports loaded with explosives, and with reactors close to meltdown, ploughed into the CIS fleet, attracting a good deal of attention. Turbolasers that were fired at the ships weren't enough to stop the kamikaze attack, and weren't able to prevent wide-spread destruction. Ten glowing supernovas emerged from the CIS fleet, engulfing ships in a colossal ball of destruction. The blast rumbled past the initial blast radius, and ripped into the fleet. Shielding failed, and hulls buckled under the intense pressure. Smaller explosions dotted the flaming expanse.

When the fire had dispersed, a full third of the once-mighty CIS fleet was wiped out, leaving close to three hundred ships. The three hundred ships then suddenly raced forward, apparently heading into close range battle with the separated Alliance and UCNC fleets, with two hundred CIS ships headed for the Alliance and the remaining ships for the UCNC.

Seeing this, the Arbiter gave an order to all of the ships under his command. "All vessels, divert power to pulse lasers and Gauss cannons! Do not engage the enemy until they are upon us!"

Following the order, the bright red that had been pooling together on a few of the Covenant vessels dispersed. Taking their place, the pulse laser turrets started to glow a bright blue. On the human ships, armour plating started to retract into the ship, revealing a small bay. The bays were unremarkable, except for the fact that they held a single turret with twin Gauss Cannons. Essentially an oversized gauss turret found on Warthogs, the Gauss Cannons were the favoured weapons when dealing with ships that were only a few thousand kilometres away. The turret also held the same advantages as the Warthog variant of the weapon-it could be fired faster.

As the CIS splinter fleet rapidly approached the UCNC fleet, the _Divine Blade_ moved to present its starboard side to the incoming ships. Every weapon on the starboard side charged up, lighting the ship up in shades of red and blue. Behind, the UCNC ships had all close ranged weapons fully charged, and were merely awaiting the arrival of the fleet.

"Cortana, prepare to fire," breathed the Arbiter, watching the sinister fleet closing in on them.

* * *

On one of the planet's many bridge cities, Fred was moving down a street with two fire-teams, and a pair of Lances. Forty Alliance soldiers were behind them, blaster rifles at the ready. The group was one of the many sweeping across and taking control of the city. Most of the other groups had seen combat, but their group had only come across a few squads of droids, leaving only trashed heaps of metal behind. 

For Fred, the city was too rich for him-most houses were built with marble and decorated with gold doorways, and the ornaments were plentiful. Still, there wasn't a single civilian in sight. He guessed that most of them were evacuated, most likely because of the ensuing chaos that was going to happen.

Already on his radio, he could hear reports of combat, the chatter of automatic weapons fire, and requests for air support. Explosions reverberated across the city every few minutes. A pair SkyHawks roared overhead, following a droid HMP gun/dropship, firing their cannons to bring it and the cargo it carried down. Up ahead was one such HMP, wrecked and burnt. A good amount of large holes indicated that cannons had brought it out of the sky. After sweeping the wrecked interior of the HMP, which revealed no signs of droids, Fred waved the force past the ruined ship and continued on.

All the while, Fred was scanning down the entire street, systematically checking each alley to make sure that the alleys were clear. His motion sensor suddenly showed ten blips moving towards them, and right on que, a squad of battle droids stepped out in front of them, blasters raising, and lining up targets, preparing to shoot. They never got the chance to.

Fred lashed out with his foot the second the droids had come out, even as they lined him and the troops behind him up. The kick simply lifted the first droid's head straight off into the sky. Before the head had hit the ground, Fred had both SMGs up in a firing position and was raining lead at the droids. The last bullet riddled droid had collapsed before the head hit the ground with a loud _clang_. The skirmish was over in a matter of seconds.

The Alliance soldiers stared at Fred in shock and disbelief. The only people they knew of who were capable of disposing of a squad of droids that quick were the Jedi. Most of the Marines and Grunts were staring at the pile of scrap metal that used to be a Battle Droid squad only seconds before, having heard of, but never seen a Spartan in action, they too were in disbelief.

"Come on, let's move!" ordered Fred. "The sooner we disable the factories, the sooner the battle ends, and the sooner we get the hell out of here."

* * *

Overhead, Banshees and SkyHawks continued to deliver their payloads against droid positions, larger concentrations of droids, as well as any droid vehicle, not that there were many. Some even were daring enough as to attack anti-air emplacements. One such Banshee pilot, Kouq 'Vistouee, peeled away from the attack on the emplacement, an Elite grin on his mandibles. The emplacement was now molten metal, and the area around it wasn't much better. Fuel Rod Cannons were _very_ handy in the right situations. 

His two wingmen rejoined him, and formed a V shape in the air. They flew over many battles, sometimes firing their plasma cannons at the droids when there were no allies in sight, or near the target zone. They were about to for another run when they spotted a pair of HMPs to his right, this time armed with apparently missiles and bombs. _Whatever it is that they are going to do, they will not survive to do it_, thought 'Vistouee. With that in mind, he brought up a communication line with his wingmen.

"'Nortomee, 'Vysomee, two enemy bombers to the right. 'Nortomee, you come down from above and make sure they cannot escape. Do not attack unless they are escaping. 'Vysomee, you follow me and destroy the one on the left. I will go after the one on the right. Go forth, warriors of the sky!" he roared.

The three Banshees accelerated forward, activating their boosters to close the distance. 'Nortomee's Banshee started drift higher and higher, until he was above the HMPs, following, but never attacking. 'Vysomee and himself, however, was another matter. 'Vysomee fired first, a green flash as the Fuel Rod shot gracefully arched towards its intended target. It impacted, and the explosion ripped through the armour at the back. The machine however, stubbornly refused to fall, and it was only after a second Fuel Rod blast and a good few seconds bathe in plasma before it started its spiral to the ground. 'Vistouee's HMP attempted to escape, but with 'Nortomee blasting away at it from above, and 'Vistouee's own plasma rounds, it too began its long overdue meeting with the ground.

'Vistouee watched them fall, and after witnessing two explosions, was satisfied. "Good work brothers. Regroup with me, and we will continue assisting the ground troops." The two other Banshees formed up behind him, and together, they sped off again in search on new targets.

* * *

General Hiinko, a Neimoidian commander, nervously rubbed and wringed his hands together, placed them behind his back, paced and started the whole process again. The city was under his jurisdiction ever since it had been wrenched away from the hands of the Alliance. Being a Neimoidian, he had made sure that there was plenty of incentives to keep the position. Obviously, money and power had been some of the incentives. But right now, he would have given almost anything to get rid of his position. 

"W-w-what's the current status of the city?" he managed to stutter out. A droid manning the various consoles in the room turned to reply.

"74 of the city has been lost to the Alliance and their new allies," the droid said in a monotone and emotionless voice.

"Why have we lost so much in so little time?" demanded Hiinko. "It has only been two hours! The Alliance cannot move that fast!"

"Currently, the majority of the fighting has been done by the new allies of the Alliance. They are sweeping through the city in groups, removing our forces systematically when found, leaving the forces behind to actually take control. There is also a ship in geosynchronous orbit with this city. That may explain why they are getting their soldiers in so fast."

"A ship? Of what type? And what origin?"

"It appears to be a carrier. It is of the newcomer's design."

Hiinko buried his face in his hands. This wasn't a battle anymore. The Alliance had won this round. "Curse you," Hiinko hissed. "Tell the factories to increase the amount of droids built by four times. I want to make sure that they will never forget this battle. And prepare my personal shuttle for launch as well."

* * *

Sgt. Kurl of the Grand Alliance Defence Force fired his blaster as fast as he could at the droid in front of him. It took three hits and collapsed into a pile. He dove into an alley for cover, just as another volley of bolts from the droids passed through where he was just moments before. 

With his back to the wall he took deep breaths to calm down, and tightened his grip on the blaster. He could hear his team's own blasters firing, an explosion or two as something went wrong, the mechanical voice of the droids requesting back-up and more; all sounds of a fierce battle being fought. He took one last breath, and whipped around the corner, his blaster up and ready to shoot.

The first thing to be shot was a droid, just like any other standing around and blasting away. It went down too easily. The same happened to a second, and a third before he was forced to duck back into the alley. The small battle went on for sometime, and when it was finally over, Kurl ran over to his squad, who were bunched around a fallen figure.

"What happened?" he demanded.

"Soren was hit!" exclaimed one of his soldiers.

"How bad is he?" Kurl asked. Soren was one of the soldiers that had been in his squad for what seemed to be forever.

"Bad enough that unless we can get him to the ships above, he won't survive. He took three blaster bolts. It's a miracle that he's still alive," patiently explained the team's impromptu medic, Reekaj.

"Alright. Where's the nearest rally point that has been set up?" Kurl asked.

"Almost half a kilometre away," answered one of the team.

"Well, let's get going. We don't have much time."

Reekaj and another soldier hauled Soren up, and draped his arms on their shoulders, and started to run for the rally point, hoping that there was a dropship there. Minutes later, they had reached the rally point, which was in a square of sorts. To their relief, an Albatross dropship was in the process of landing, and was only metres from the ground. Also arrayed across the square were other ships-Pelicans, Phantoms and Sentinels were there as well.

They weren't the only ones there either; many soldiers were pouring in, and being handled by the more trained medics. One ran up to Kurl and his squad when they were approaching the ships. The medic was human, but wasn't wearing standard Alliance uniform, and so they guessed he was from the UCNC.

"What's the problem?" the medic shouted. Even here, it was hard to hear much, as SkyHawks continued to pound everything droid to rubble, with the exception of the factories, which were too well protected to go against.

"He took three blaster bolts to the chest!" shouted back Kurl.

The medic then checked Soren again, before pulling out a roll of bandages and a can that read 'Biofoam' on the side, and tied them across the wounds.

"Alright, I think that we should move him to those dropships. I can't do anymore here, and the docs up above have better equipment, and a cleaner environment."

They hefted Soren up, who was now mumbling incoherent words, and lifted him towards one of the Sentinels. The interior of the Sentinel had been hastily reconfigured, with more floor space for the wounded who were now being brought aboard the dropships. Once inside, they strapped him down, and exited the craft.

"Thanks for the assist," said a grateful Kurl.

The medic nodded, and moved off to tend to the many other patients waiting. Kurl turned to address his squad.

"Alright men, prepare to move out. We are down one person, so we have to be extra careful to avoid any other losses. Grab what ever packs you need, and let's go."

Before they could go, a loud engine hissed over their heads. Another Albatross was coming down, and seemed to be loaded to the limit, as it was not exactly a smooth landing. The ramp hissed open, and when it was down, a thudding was heard from within. What came down the ramp, Kurl couldn't take his eyes off.

"What is that?" asked one of the Alliance soldiers, voicing Kurl's thoughts.

The Hunter pair walked off the Albatross without a problem. The Marine who came out next noticed the squad's stares and walked over.

"Hunters. We can't bring any of our heavy vehicles in, so we had to make due with Hunters."

"Listen up people!" shouted a Marine Lieutenant. "Whoever's here, form up, whether you're in the UCNC or the Alliance, it doesn't matter. We're making a final push to the droid factories. Get whatever you need, and then follow me! We got a lot of work ahead of us."

* * *

Up above, high in the sky, a far different battle was waged, with far different results. The once combined fleet of the UCNC and the Grand Alliance fleet were separated by a sea of CIS capital ships. The smaller UCNC fleet would have been annihilated, had it not been for a broadside by the _Divine Blade_, and the detonation of five Shivas. The enormously reduced numbers of the CIS fleet enabled the UCNC fleet to match the CIS fleet. The _Divine Blade_ was taking on four CIS ships- a _Lucrehulk_-class battleship, and three_ Providence_-class destroyers. The _Lucrehulk_ was heavily damaged, with fires starting to become visible, and many holes scarring the surface of the ship. The three _Providence_s weren't faring as well either-one was practically disabled, with a damaged reactor. 

On the other side of the battle, things weren't looking quite up as much. Lacking the power of a ship like the _Divine Blade_, and also without weapons capable of mass destruction, such as nukes, the Alliance fleet was forced into a melee of sorts against the CIS fleet- a free-for-all of ships, starfighters and laser fire. Battle lines had dissolved, and any attempt at restoring some kind of order to the battle had failed. The result was that the battle was, at least on the Alliance end, a chaotic mess. A _bloody_ chaotic mess.

Onboard the _Starfire_, Captain Dentris watched the battle with growing concern. They were losing more ships to the CIS fleet with every moment that passed. "Communications, try contacting all ships again," requested Dentris.

"There's no point sir." said the communications officer. "Our communications array was destroyed from the last volley."

"Then keep trying!" exploded Dentris. Taking a deep breath, he continued, in a more controlled tone. "I know that our communications array was hit. However, if we cannot get some semblance of order, then things are going to turn out far worse than they already are."

As to prove his point, a Nebulon-B frigate floated past, firing turbolasers as normal. Out of nowhere, a pair of high-yield proton torpedoes, most likely fired from a _Providence_-class destroyer, struck the walkway connecting the two sides together, and cracked it, as well as the spine. The two halves floated away, the lights starting to dim.

"I'll keep trying sir," said the communication officer, typing furiously on the keys.

Dentris sighed. "In the meantime, divert more power to the engines. We are sitting ducks out here." The engines of the mighty warship rumbled, and the ship lurched forward. The turbolaser batteries continue to fire, spewing a steady stream of green laser fire. A flash signalled the detonation of an X-Wing as it was hit by multiple lasers fired from the trio of Droid Starfighters that were tailing it. The remains of the burnt chassis crashed into the shield of the _Starfire_ and disintegrated.

* * *

Far away, on a distant planet, a battle was raging fiercely. The location was a sprawling metropolis, a once great city now infested with droids, who had dug in. A golden Field Master waved his warriors forward amidst a storm of blaster fire coming from the bunker up ahead. A red rocket whooshed past, and missed the Field Master's head by mere centimetres. A blast of heat behind indicated that a Marine wielding a M19 had launched the rocket. Fire blossomed out, and when the smoke was cleared, there was a hole in the bunker's side, which promptly had another rocket launched into it. The entire bunker detonated, the ammunition supplies stored inside exploding. 

The Field Master continued to advanced, and ordered his soldiers to do the same. The bulk of the battalion strength force of Elites and Marines continued to sweep the city relentlessly, with the Field Master lagged behind. Without warning, a series of blaster bolts struck the golden Elite's shields, which flared up, and blocked the blaster fire from harming the Field Master. He gave a growl, and whipped around, a Plasma Rifle in hand. He saw the offenders, a group of five Battle Droids. He expertly threw a Plasma Grenade, which adhered and detonated. Before the excess plasma had cleared, he fired his Plasma Rife into the mess.

He walked through the dust, and looked down. Four had been destroyed, and the last one was on the ground. Its legs were blown off, and the chest armour had three holes burnt into it, revealing exposed circuitry. The machine still struggled to rise, and attempted to blast the Field Master staring down at it. _Weak_, the Field Master thought. It wasn't worth him using plasma on it. He raised his leg and brought his boot down on the chest, grinding the machine to the ground.

"Cleanse this place of these pathetic machines," he snarled into the communications channel to the rest battalion he was commanding, even as explosions echoed across the line, battle cries and curses included.

* * *

On yet another planet, a company strong group of Stormtroopers held a fort deep inside a city against constant droid assaults while the scientists inside evacuated. Flying above, a wing of Phantoms and Pelicans assisted in the mass destruction. The Phantoms had their old purple shade back, and sported triple Plasma Cannons, sacrificing troop space for firepower. And firepower it was. The triple plasma cannons could reduce any attacking group into a mass of molten slagged metal. Not even the shielded Droidekas could stand up to the amount of plasma the cannons spewed out. The walls of the fort had many E-Web cannons mounted, spraying out blaster bolts at an incredible rate which also added to the firepower that was hammering the droids. 

Droid fighters swooped in, knocking out three Pelicans and two Phantoms, as well as damaging a fourth, before being chased away a combination of missiles and blaster fire. The battle would continue for hours, consuming fighters of the ground and the air from both sides. Soon enough, the ground was clogged with the remnants of droids and wreckage of crashed Pelicans and Phantoms, intermixed with downed droid Starfighters.

* * *

On Cato Neimoidia, Fred instinctively ducked as the hulking form of a Super Battle Droid raised its wrist and aimed at him. A rocket flew past, and blew a respectable hole in the wall behind him. He fired bursts from his Battle Rifle at the machine, all of which struck with precision around the area where the shape of a head was. The machine staggered back, and attempted to fire off another rocket. A burst from Fred's Battle Rifle caused its aim to shift, and the rocket flew into the sky. Two consecutive bursts were sufficient to send the machine to the ground. 

Behind him, the combined fire of so many Battle Rifles and blasters were enough to send three more to the scrap heap. A grenade was enough to send a fourth down, bringing the squad of Super Battle Droids down. A selection of Marines, Elites and Alliance soldiers cautiously stepped out of the rubble and buildings they had been using for cover. A few observed the droids that had only just recently destroyed, however, the rest stared at the enormous structure that was the droid factory.

A steady stream of smoke from molten metal slowly rolled out of funnels, and even from a distance machinery could be heard, churning out droids in a desperate effort to swarm the UCNC and Alliance attackers in the city. Fred opened a communications line to the Arbiter. There was static for a few seconds before the line was established, and the Arbiter's deep voice was heard. "Yes?"

"Arbiter, this is SPARTAN-104, we have reached one of the factories. We are ready to proceed," reported Fred.

"Good work SPARTAN. I'm receiving other reports of the rest of the soldiers. They too have reached the factories. Unfortunately, I must order you to hold your position. It is a fruitless effort to continue onwards and destroy the factories from within. I am sending the frigate _Celestial Spirit_ to orbit. Give co-ordinates, and the _Celestial Spirit_ will bombard the factories from orbit. Pulse Lasers are more accurate than Gauss Cannons. Make absolutely sure that your co-ordinates are correct. Arbiter out." The line cut off.

Fred waited a moment, then the communications channel to all UNC forces on the city was opened.

"All UCNC soldiers, this is the _Celestial Spirit_. We are awaiting co-ordinates. Pulse Lasers are charged and ready to fire."

The SPARTAN waited before motioning forward a Marine holding a Sniper Rifle. "Private, transmit co-ordinates to the _Celestial Spirit_," ordered Fred. The private nodded, and raised the Sniper Rifle, before transmitting the location of the factory.

Seconds later, a blinding flash appeared above them as the _Celestial Spirit _discharged a single laser. The blue beam came down on the factory, melting through armour and foundations. Metal buckled, strained and melted under the heat of such a shot. Two seconds later, flashes happened across the entire city as multiple Pulse Laser turrets discharged lasers to every factory. Fred watched the spectacle without emotion.

"_Celestial Spirit_, the target has been destroyed," he reported.

Across the entire communications network, reports echoed across, all about the destruction of factories. Across the landscape, fires raged as the last of the droids were destroyed, and smoke blanketed the sky as factories, droids, and homes were consumed by fire, the result of war.

* * *

On Mustafar, a recently re-created CIS council sat, reading through reports. There were reports for losses, and even a report for the number of losses the Alliance had suffered. It had taken their collaborator within the Alliance close to two days to get this information. Still, the UCNC losses were not found, due to the fact that they had essentially refused to release any information. One of the members, a Neimoidian stood up, and slammed a fragile fist down on the table. 

"How?" The Neimoidian's voice was choked with rage. "How did this, this, this _catastrophe_ happen?"

"Sit down," demanded another member. "And how did it happen? Didn't you read it? They bombarded the factories from orbit- a very daring manoeuvre."

"It doesn't matter. The factories at Cato Neimoidia aren't as important as the ones on our other worlds. We can still rebuild from the losses."

"Besides, we have another matter to attend to. We have received a very, intriguing, offer from someone in the Alliance. We will need a majority, though, if we are to accept this offer."

The relevant reports were read, and processed by the members of the council.

Mizor, the leader of the council, spoke up again. "Those in favour, say aye."

* * *

On another edge of the galaxy, on a thoroughly conquered and subjugated Kamino, Taun We strolled through the gleaming white corridors. Some of the corridors were still marked by the battle, and Battle Droids patrolled through the city. Taun We slipped past another patrol, and after a quick check around, she slipped through a secret passageway in the way. 

The passage led her to a turbolift, which she took. Everything flashed by as the lift descended into the stormy oceans, protected by a mere metre thick glass that showed the surrounds off quite well. The lift slowed, and ground to an halt, before silently sliding open. Taun We was now underneath the violent seas of Kamino, in a highly secret cloning lab. It had been constructed, but never had a use. Until recently, when the CIS invaded.

Inside, the tall lanky Kaminoan was surrounded by hundreds of glass tubes, each holding clones. Below, marched almost a thousand Clone Troopers, 'relics' of an age old war. They were training in simulations, marching in battalions, or practicing with live ammunition. Trainers had been smuggled in, and had been training the clones. Everything needed for an uprising was here. The facility was the cloak, concealing everything, the clones were the swords, ready to battle, and all that was left was the dagger, for silent operations too cumbersome for a normal clone. Taun We entered another part of the secret facility, and was faced with a security access panel. She entered her code, and the door slid open.

She stepped inside, as was greeted by a series of clicks as clips were secured, and within moments Taun We was facing down the barrels of four DC-17m ICWS blasters.

* * *

A.N: My gosh, how long did this take me? Blame everything from chronic laziness to lack of inspiration for the length of time it took me to get this out. Now, serious matters. First of all, yes, I have played Halo 3. Yes, it is good. Unfortunately, the storyline has screwed up several things I had planned. So, let's disregard it, eh? 

Also, many changes had been implemented in Halo 3 that I thought was good (e.g. the SMG is useful! And it sounds awesome to), so, remember that new SMG I had introduced? Well, say bye-bye to it, and hello to the Halo 3 SMG. Also, the automatic Battle Rifle is bye-byed, but it's still here, just not automatic anymore, the MA5C has taken that job. Additionally, I'm going to introduce several things from the up-coming Halo Wars as well, mainly the vehicles. Since it hasn't been released, a good deal of it will be what I think it would be, so when it comes out, don't be surprised if what I did isn't the same. Sorry about the quality of this chapter, I needed this one done with, which was hard to do with me running out of material to rely on which also explains the two quick point of view changes. Now that school's almost over, I think the next update HOPEFULLY won't take as long. So, R&R and see ya!


	12. Galaxy Wide War

**The Intergalactic War**

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: OK, here we go with the next chapter. I hope that this one is better than the last one. Also, this one will switch viewpoints quite frequently as I realised about three-quarters of the way into the last chapter that one battle per chapter isn't going to convey a sense of war. And this is probably just a little filler, just full of action, and little plot. Don't hurt me!)

Reviews:

Ranger24: Yeah, I know, after so long eh?

Tseh Toaster: Hmmm, internet does that to you, doesn't it? Thanks for the support, though I haven't finished a few of the scenes in the previous chapter yet though. Hope you'll enjoy the scenes in this chapter as much as the last one! And the cliffhangers, well, what can I say?

Kaiju-Lord: Thanks, I don't really know that much about the Star Wars, since the universe is enormous, but the Halo universe is a great deal easier to understand. As for the Jedi or Sith, well, the problem is that they would seem, overpowered, you know what I mean? I'll see what I can do, but at this point it's not applicable.

carlo707: Can't have droids without Clone Troopers, can we? Relics? That made me laugh in a good way, honestly. Perhaps they are relics, but still, they're not your normal relics.

Star wars 2136: Thanks for pointing that out. Who knows where it would have gone if you didn't point it out, eh? One of the problems with crossovers is that the technology used is vastly different, so I have to try to even some things out a bit. Don't expect it to be one-sided for much longer (hopefully). I've got surprise (not really a big one though) coming up that may change the direction of the war, permanently. But that's for later. Much later. The Flood? Well, wait and see. For Jedi, well, while they are iconic of the Star Wars universe, I never really planned to include them in this story. Reason being is that I think that war is more about the normal people on the frontline, not some supermen who leap into action and decimate entire battalions with ease (alright, I'm exaggerating but you get what I mean). But who knows? I might include them at a later stage. As for the SPARTAN Threes, well, you'll have to wait as well. So thanks for the review and the advice, and I'm used to people bitching about my work. So no problems. And I think you mean chapters, not reviews…

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or anything related to it, it belongs to George Lucas. I do not own Halo or anything associated with it, it belongs to Bungie.

Chapter 12: Galaxy-Wide War

* * *

The plain sand of the Dune Sea was nothing remarkable. However, the dunes hid many dangers. One such danger was now since the CIS occupied the planet, they had built multiple fortifications across the vast expanse of sand. One such bunker, camouflaged to hide in the sands was proving problematic for the UCNC armoured division moving across the plains. 

Across the open plain, twenty UCNC Scorpion Tanks rumbled across the dunes, throwing up huge clouds of dust and exhaust fumes. A large blast from a dug-in AAT tank narrowly missed the tanks, which quickly scattered, rumbling at the fast speed possible. One of the tanks stopped, and rotated the turret to face the bunker. The entire tank shook as a 120mm round left the main gun, and 120mm's of accelerated tungsten ripped through the bunker, and into the AAT. The AAT exploded when the round reached the ammunition stored inside, and the resulting explosion tore the bunker into pieces. Another laser blast roared out from another bunker, and tore into a Scorpion. The tank took the blast on its thick frontal armour, and survived long enough to send another round into a anti-tank emplacement that was being set up. A second laser blast caused the Scorpion to explode in a fireball that sent the turret flying off the chassis.

Behind the advancing Scorpions was the rest of the force. Twelve Wraith tanks were moving behind the Scorpions, hurling Plasma Mortars that reduced the ground to glittering glass and sending molten droid and tank parts flying everywhere. The more vulnerable Warthogs, Ghosts and Cougar APC's were behind the armour, protecting themselves and the infantry inside.

* * *

Master Sergeant Keith loved his job. He loved the feeling of the tank as it rumbled forward, he loved being surrounded by plates of armour, and most of all he loved the feeling of a 120mm round leaving the barrel as his gunner sent another round into the droids. He stopped the tank and the hull shook as another round left the main cannon, and heard the explosion as something was hit. 

He brought up the display, a holographic representation of the area outside. The screen bathed his face in a pale blue light. "Albert?" he called out to the gunner, who sat inside the rather cramped turret.

"Sir?"

"New targets: enemy light armour, 10 o'clock, 367 metres, designated Tanks 1 and 2," he called out.

"Confirmed. Locking on…target locked, round loaded. Firing!" Another rumble shook the tank.

"Tank 1 destroyed," reported the gunner, even as the autoloader slammed another shell into the cannon. "Round loaded, locking on…target acquired! Firing!"

A second rumble rocked the Scorpion.

Keith checked the display. Both of the hovertanks were destroyed, each with a hole in its side, flames licking away at the remains. "Targets destroyed. Great job. Let's get going."

The Master Sergeant accelerated the tank again, and moved to join with the rest of the tanks, still advancing and destroying any kind of hostile armour they encountered. Behind them, another wave of Plasma Mortars flew over and into a small pack of GATs looking to engage the Scorpions at closer ranges.

The intense heat of the mortars melted anything that was in the blast radius, and the pack of GATs was no different. One unfortunate light tank received a direct blast, which not only launched the tank into the air a few metres, it slagged the entire top half of the tank into molten metal. The melted remains crashed into the ground soon after. One GAT got through, and fired a few bolts from the twin medium laser cannons mounted against the lead Scorpion. The bolts did nothing more than to leave a few small craters in the armour, which was nothing compared to the hole the Scorpion blew into the GAT seconds later.

Behind the mighty Scorpions and Wraiths rolled the light vehicle detachment. Warthogs armed with M41 LAAGs or Gauss Cannons, Ghosts and Spectres, and the latest addition to the UCNC armed forces, the Cougar IFV. Inside sat a squad of Marines, all wearing combat gear that was suited to the hot desert climate without losing any protection.

"Hey Sarge," asked a Marine. "What's the deal with this place anyways? It's all desert and sand, nothing really worth noting here."

"If you really want to know, we're gonna use this flat piece of land for an LZ for a fire support frigate!" yelled the sergeant over the rumble of the Cougar's engine, and the deafening blast of a tank cannon fired too close.

"A fire support frigate? Why do we need one of those babies here?" asked yet another Marine.

"You want to go into enemy territory without artillery support? Those tanks can't come with us into the city!"

Outside the Cougar, a squad of Battle Droids appeared over a dune of sand, every single droid holding a rocket launcher. They launched a simultaneous assault on the lead Scorpion, which exploded into a fireball. A second volley of rockets disabled a second Scorpion.

Curses ran rampant through the battlenet, and the group was cut down when one of the Cougar's turned its twin autocannons onto the group. The twin autocannons roared and sent hundreds of large calibre rounds into the droids, which splintered apart and collapsed under the barrage.

"Keep moving! Don't hang around the same spot for too long. Cougars, Ghosts and Warthogs, take up escort positions around and between the tanks! Keep any droids with rockets away!"

The orders blared out from the radio, coming from the Lieutenant in charge who was with in the lead Warthog, riding shotgun. The lighter vehicles roared into action, and soon were circling around the tanks, on look out of any sign of a droid wielding a rocket.

_

* * *

The planet Kalarba resembled Earth, in some ways_, thought the Master Chief as he dove to the side to avoid the heavy bolts of an E-Web, which cut into and decimated a squad of Grunts behind him. One Grunt managed to throw a Plasma Grenade, which glowed with deadly beauty before adhering to the barrel of the cannon. The explosion hurled the gun emplacement, and the droid manning it off the edge it was mounted upon and into the water. 

The Kalarba Archipelago was a rather small chain of rather small islands only a few hundred kilometres away from the capital of Kalarba. Thus, it made it a rather good refuelling point for fighters or short-ranged bombers. The Archipelago was made up of twelve islands, and a large CIS force consisting of numerous droids, light vehicles and some aircraft was engaged against the 22nd Combined Battalion, which was made up of a combination of Covenant and Marine soldiers, along with some Pelican and Phantom dropships and other assorted hardware.

The major feature of the Archipelago was the sixth island. Other than being directly in the middle, it had a small hill on it that allowed artillery pieces and even self-propelled artillery to fire almost anywhere on the Archipelago. As such, it was a constant see-sawing battle for the hill, as well as attempting to remove the other side from the islands altogether.

The UCNC controlled four islands, whilst the CIS controlled five. The other three were currently being fought for, with the CIS appearing to have the advantage on one, with another quickly being dominated by the UCNC. The sixth island, the one without a clear favourite, was a hot bed of activity. Bullets, plasma, blaster bolts, grenades and thermal detonators flew everywhere as the combatants fought tooth and nail in an effort to gain supremacy, of both the island and the hill that both sides so desperately wanted.

With the Master Chief battling on the fourth island, several teams of ODSTs were deployed to assist in the capture of the island. Once such team, Delta Team was locked in a fierce battle against a squad of Battle Droids, supported by a group of Super Battle Droids. The leader, a Sergeant with a red patch on his shoulder, threw a grenade into the midst of a small group of Battle Droids. The detonation shook the ground, and he popped up and fired two bursts into a Battle Droid still standing. He ducked back behind a large rock to avoid the faster more accurate shots of the Super Battle Droids.

At the same time, Corporal Conrad levelled a SPNKr Rocket Launcher at the group of Supers, who were busy pinning down another two ODST's with constant blaster fire, and fired once, then twice. Twin explosions twice the size of the grenade blast roared over the droids, consuming them in a fireball of heat and debris. When the Sergeant peeked over, two craters and a pair of Super Battle Droids missing their legs were all that remained of the group of Super Battle Droids. The two were promptly blasted by ten rifles.

"Come on!" he shouted at his squad. "Let's move it! Get to the hill, and secure it for the Rhinos!" The entire squad, ten Helljumpers in total scrambled away from their cover, and followed their Sergeant.

Sergeant Ryans held his Battle Rifle close to his chest as he puffed and ran to the hill, less than three hundred metres away, his squad of Helljumpers, all clad in black protective body armour and helmets following, clutching their weapons tight. All ran eagerly, none afraid.

When a bunch of Battle Droids appeared, to their left, they were caught by surprise. Sergeant Ryans barely noticed them, and only realised they were there when the bio-monitor for Private Barry and Reed flashed red. He skidded to a halt, and saw the injured privates on the ground, clutching their chests were the bolts had hit.

"Give it to them!" he roared, but could barely hear his own voice over the sound of seven assorted Battle Rifles and MA5C Assault Rifles pouring bullets into the droids. The metallic automatons were ripped apart.

Satisfied by the droid's destruction, he ran over to where the injured privates lay. The squad's resident medic, Private Carmen was already hovering over them, her MA5C slung over her shoulder, and the field medical kit out.

"How are they?" asked Ryans as he hurried over.

"Reed didn't make it. Barry's in a bad way. I really can't do much, except patch him up and get him to base. I can fix him up there, though."

Ryans nodded. "Alright, you do that. Get him to the base, then hitch a ride to the top of the hill. We'll have it secured by then. We'll have to get to Reed's body later. Grab his dog tags, and mark his body with a NAV point."

Private Carmen responded by lifting up Private Barry, and slung one of his arms over her shoulder. She trudged away, towards the evacuation point set up for wounded personnel. Sergeant Ryans jogged back to the place where the rest of the Helljumpers were taking cover.

"Helljumpers, let's move! Get to the hilltop, now!" he shouted.

The entire squad sprang up and ran for the hill. Ryans followed suit, running faster to take the lead. When they got to the hill, Ryans was surprised to see a pair of Elites, a Major and a Minor, already at the foot of the rise, taking cover from the blaster bolts that rained down from above. A wounded Marine lay near them, but was still firing his Battle Rifle one handed at the droids, picking off what he could see.

The squad of Helljumpers all ran towards the pinned Elites and Marine, firing at the droids above as they did so. One droid that appeared over the edge was struck with multiple rounds from a MA5C and toppled off. The droid let out a humorous cry as it did so. The Helljumpers attracted the droids attention, and taking advantage of the slackened fire, the Major Elite lobbed a Plasma Grenade up to the droid position, with the Minor following suit. Ryans stopped in front of the Major Elite.

"Sergeant Ryans, what's going on?" he asked the Elite, even as the rest of the Helljumpers took cover and fired back at the droids. A blaster bolt whizzed past the two leaders, and forced them to duck behind cover.

"I am 'Lingamee. We, that is three lances and fire teams assaulted the hill some units ago. Unfortunately, the metallic warriors had already set up emplacements on the hilltop. We were wiped out, and we are all that is left," explained the Elite. Ryans cursed. Twenty seven Marines, Elites and Grunts dead.

"Are there anymore survivors up there? Just in case," Ryans asked.

"No."

"Alright. I'm calling in an artillery strike on that hill." Ryans turned on his radio. "Firebase Zulu, come in. Come in Firebase Zulu."

He waited, and then repeated, until the radio blared a response.

"This is Firebase Zulu, at your service, Sergeant."

"Good to hear from you Zulu. I need an artillery strike at grid B-7!" he shouted.

"Roger that. Any friendlies in range?"

"None, apart from our squad and the remains of three fire teams."

"OK, Sergeant, we copy that. Enjoy the fireworks."

'Lingamee and Ryans heard the rumble as four 185mm artillery pieces were aimed and fired at the hill. "Artillery's coming in! Get back!" he shouted into the radio. There was confusion as his squad and the Minor Elite ran back from the base of the hill, with the wounded Marine carried by two of his Helljumpers to where their superiors were.

All heard the distinctive whistling of the shells as they flew to the hill. Four fireballs erupted from the hill, and sent columns of dirt and grass flying into the air, accompanied by scrap metal. There was another rumble as the guns were reloaded, and another volley was sent on its way. Four more explosions ripped into the hill, and into any survivors of the first barrage.

"Jones, check the hill for anything still moving," Ryans ordered. The Helljumper snapped off a salute, and then unslung the Sniper Rifle on his back, before sweeping the hill with its scope. "Nothing I can see Sarge," confirmed the Helljumper.

"Alright. Firebase Zulu, targets are destroyed. Cease fire." The pounding from the artillery halted, and silence ensued.

"Warriors, secure the hill and check for any survivors," ordered 'Lingamee.

The entire group moved cautiously, and once at the hill, placed a bullet or plasma round in every droid that was more than half intact. The entire hilltop was dotted with craters, and the ground was strewed with droid parts. Ryans was saddened to see that Marines, Elites and Grunts also dotted the hilltop. He only hoped that they were killed before the bombardment. He walked up to 'Lingamee, who was surveying the island.

"Any survivors?" asked 'Lingamee.

"None. Looks like we got 'em all."

"Not quite. See that?" the Elite pointed out something in the distance, and Ryans was forced to use the magnification system in his helmet to see what the Elite was pointing out. He didn't like what he saw.

A number of droids was gathering and from what he could see, there were Super Battle Droids thrown into the mix, and even a few Droidekas. Adding to the already overwhelming firepower they were facing was a pair of GAT light tanks. He cursed.

"Command, come in, this is Sergeant Ryans, ODST Delta Team. We have secured the hill, but we have a major problem on our hands. Command, do you read?"

The radio blared, and static overcame it before it cleared up. "This is Command. We read you. Excellent job, but you need to hold that position. I repeat, hold that hill Delta Team. We have Pelicans airlifting Rhinos into position, but they won't arrive at your position for another five minutes. Fire teams Charlie and Omega are en-route to your position . Hold that hill, Delta. Good luck, Command out." The radio blared and died.

"What did they say?" asked 'Lingamee.

"We have to hold this hill until the Pelicans arrive. We've got some fire teams coming over to help," informed Ryans.

"Then we shall do so. We have the high ground. Our greatest worry are the tanks, and those ball droids. The rest shall fall easily enough."

"I hope you're right. Alright, Helljumpers!" shouted Ryans. The squad leapt to attention immediately. "Command wants us to hold this hill until the Pelicans with the Rhinos arrive. I want an ammo check, now!"

The Helljumpers, and the Minor Elite all rummaged through the ammunition pockets in their armour.

"Not good Sarge," said one Private. "I'm down to four mags for the Battle Rifle, five SMG mags and two frags.

"Same here, except I have a few of those thermal detonators the droids sometimes carry around, and three M6G clips."

"Five clips for my MA5C, and three frags. Eight rounds for the Sniper Rifle."

"Four MA5C mags, and two reloads three reloads for the Jackhammer Sarge."

The reports went on. "My Plasma Rifle is almost depleted, and I have two Plasma Grenades. I do have a Needler, with almost five reloads for it," said the Minor Elite.

"'Lingamee?" prompted Ryans.

"I have only two more reloads for my Carbine. I do have an Energy Sword, though and it is at full capacity. Additionally, I have three Plasma Grenades."

The sergeant checked his own pouches. "Three mags for the Battle Rifle, and five for the SMG, and two frags. Alright, listen up everyone. SPARTANS have held off bigger assaults than this with less firepower. If they can do it, well, what makes you think you can't? I want everyone into the craters- they'll make nice foxholes for us to hide in. Conserve ammo, and fire only if you can disable the droid. Grenade tight groups, and so on. Move out!"

"Sir!" came a shout. Ryans looked down the hill and saw close to twenty Marines coming up, in addition to a Hunter pair. The Marines were heavily armed, with at least two Jackhammer launchers, and some pilfered droid weaponry.

"Fire teams Charlie and Omega, sir. Command said you could use some help," said the lead Marine, the Hunters stopping behind them.

"Great timing. Get into the craters, and blow away any droid who even looks this way."

The entire group spread out without hesitation and jumped into the foxholes, and braced themselves, while the Hunters moved to the front.

"Warriors! The time is near! Strike the enemy down without mercy!" Shouted 'Lingamee as the droids approached.

"Here it comes people. Don't shoot till you see the glow of their eyes!"

* * *

The Arbiter stood on the bridge of the _Divine Blade_ silently, contemplating the stars. 

His ship was over Coruscant, along with the battered remains of his and the Alliance fleet. The sheer number of CIS vessels had almost overwhelmed his fleet, as well as the Alliance fleet. Only the timely arrival of a battle group from the First Fleet had prevented the complete destruction of the two fleets.

The Arbiter watched as another fleet amassed. This time, the fleet was made up of UCNC ships. Apparently Lord Hood had received his message from the corvette he had sent back, and had sent another fleet.

Another two hundred vessels, mostly comprised of Covenant ships had arrived…along with twelve modified _Phoenix_-class colony vessels retrofitted to serve as enormous troop carriers.

The Arbiter was reading through the supply manifest, to get an idea of how many soldiers he had under his command. The number of soldiers he had was growing, but the Arbiter feared it wasn't enough. Droids still out-numbered them, and so did their fleets. If it had been up to him, he would have simply glassed all areas in which droids were confirmed to be in.

Unfortunately, some in the Alliance council didn't share the same beliefs he did. It was making life very difficult for the Arbiter. Politics and war never got along well with each other. Politics wasn't the Arbiter's strong point either. He preferred being in battle, on the bridge of a ship or on the ground, an Energy Sword in hand.

The Arbiter looked at the end of the manifest, and was surprised to find the section sealed off, and the words 'Top-Secret' printed on the front.

Opening it, the Arbiter was confronted with a series of DNA and retina checks and scans, until the document opened. He glanced through it, and was shocked by the implications. But one stood out more than the rest.

He had an entire company of SPARTAN-III's at his disposal.

Echo Company.

* * *

Naboo, though one of the planets of the Alliance, had few ships defending it, much like many other planets as more and more ships were pulled from defending planets to combat the massive fleets of the CIS. 

Five ships, most of them Imperial Star Destroyers, though there was a carrier mixed in the lot orbited the planet, prepared to fight to the bitter end if needed.

Far away, a Covenant Assault Carrier exited Slipspace, followed by three _CCS_-class Battlecruisers and a carrier. They were the remains of the Brute fleet that had fled to this galaxy to avoid the fleets of the UCNC.

"Ship Master, what is our status?" asked the Prophet of Salvation as he moved closer towards the displays on his Hover Chair.

The Brute Ship Master bowed low. "We have sustained critical damage to our weapon systems. All we have left are the two Energy Projectors. Luckily, our complement of soldiers and vehicles are intact, and are eager to deploy."

"Burn the enemy fleet first, Ship Master. Then land our troops, and bring the weapon down," ordered the Prophet.

"As you wish, Holy One."

As the ships advanced closer, they held the advantage. Few Covenant ships held markings, as the UCNC ships were typically identified using a IFF tag. Since the remnants of the Brute fleet had fled and were gone, there really was no way for the Alliance to determine the allegiance of the Covenant ships.

Which gave the Brute ships the advantage, which they would have used- had they not immediately fired all weapons as soon as they reached maximum effective range.

"What the!" exclaimed the captain of the Star Destroyer that led the defence group. "They're firing on us!"

The faster and deadlier Energy Projectors struck first. The shielding of the lead Star Destroyer held out for a second, before it gave way to the beams. Multiple Energy Projectors punched through armour plating, and into the ship. Ammunition stored inside went off as the beams swept through, cutting into durasteel, flesh and amour.

The Star Destroyer detonated as the reactor went critical, and turned into a rolling thundercloud of debris and flames, which soon died down. The plasma waves flew into the cloud, and turned the cloud an angry red as the plasma melted through the debris, before dissipating. The formation of the small defence fleet meant that the majority of the Plasma Torpedos were wasted on the remains of the lead ship.

The initial surprise of being attacked by an supposed ally wearing off, the four remaining ships quickly rallied. The carrier fell back towards the centre of the diamond shaped formation, and began to release single ship fighters, bombers and interceptors. The four other Star Destroyers powered up their turbolaser batteries to full strength, and prepared proton torpedo tubes.

"Holy one, the filth are preparing to fight back," reported the Brute Shipmaster.

"Take no heed to what losses we might incur here, Shipmaster. They will ascend to the Great Journey, dying for the Covenant. We just need to establish a foothold, and prepare to unleash the great weapon."

"As you wish, Holy one. All ships, full speed ahead! Cleanse these heretics with the Forerunners flames!"

The three cruisers accelerated at the defence fleet, plasma lines glowing, and globules of red plasma starting to collect on their flanks.

"They're charging for us sir," reported the navigation officer aboard the Star Destroyer _Allegiance_, which was now the de-facto flagship of the defence battle group.

"If they want to do that, then let's not disappoint them. All turbolasers, maximum power! Fire at will ladies and gentlemen," ordered the captain.

Turbolaser batteries across all the ships began to discharge bright lances of energy, as pulse lasers, plasma torpedos and Energy Projectors from the Covenant fleet fired in return. Space was lit up in explosions as turbolasers were soaked up by shielding, breaking through and punching holes in alien armour.

Two of the cruisers exploded under the pressure of the barrage, but the stronger Assault Carrier and its lowlier cousin waded through. The Covenant barrage reached the Alliance battle group, and one Star Destroyer exploded into a fireball, whilst the carrier was crippled by a plasma torpedo which had damaged the engines.

Fighters wove patterns with each other, and bombers did their best to knock out enemy ships or vital sections. Squadrons of teardrop shaped Seraphs, piloted by Brutes did their best against TIE Fighters and Interceptors as well as A-Wings and X-Wings, but ultimately, the lack of Brute prowess in space made them little match for the Alliance fighters. Many of the single ship losses from the Alliance came from the point defence pulse laser turrets, which discharged bright blue lances of energy.

In the end, the only surviving vessel was the Assault Carrier, and even then, it was badly damaged. Fires sprouted from ruptured sections of the mighty warship's hull, and a majority of it's weapons were disabled. The ship rumbled through Naboo's atmosphere, the hull managing to hold itself together.

"Shipmaster, prepare our entire army. Land there, above this city, and take it by force!" ordered the Prophet of Salvation.

The Assault Carrier grounded to a halt above the capital of Theed. Civilians and defence force members watched in a mixture of horror and fascination as a ghostly purple beam descended from the Assault Carrier's belly. The first thing wave of Brutes descended, and automatically fired their Spikers at the gawking civilians and security troops gathered near the plaza which was chosen as the LZ.

Superheated metal spikes stabbed through people as they started to run. A Spike Grenade detonated, and the resulting metal spikes from it tore through more security troops as they rushed to hold back the Brute flood.

"Set up the barricades!" shouted the lieutenant in charge, firing a blaster with the others as they took cover around the plaza.

Brutes were streaming through now, even as bodies of them started to collect as massed laser fire came from the responding troops overcame even the Brute's thick hides, as they landed with little to no cover at all.

But that advantage didn't last.

A column of Jackals landed, their arm mounted shields raised, and formed an impromptu wall before the defenders. Blaster bolts were absorbed by the shields, and the Jackals started to advance slowly, firing bolts of green plasma from their Plasma Pistols. Behind them, more Brutes gathered, and began to set up stationary shield generators, and bringing down barricades and Shade plasma turrets.

The lieutenant cursed. They, being mainly security forces, carried little heavy firepower. Now it was working against them, as the numerical superiority of the Covenant and the savagery of the Brutes was bearing down on them.

"Get those Landspeeders here, now!" ordered the captain.

Landspeeders were the heaviest vehicle they could bring down on their attackers, at least until a reinforcement fleet arrived. That was, if they could hold out that long. He had heard that the nearby cities were sending more help over, and wished for their arrival.

The security guards were now facing a situation that was rapidly spiralling downwards. The Jackals, despite having a few of their numbers thinned, were still advancing.

"Concentrate your fire on a single one at a time!" ordered the officer in charge.

It proved effective, as the shields failed under the weight of such fire, and allowed more blaster bolts to pour through the openings. Numerous Jackals fell, and the emboldened guards stepped up, and pushed forward.

A pair of Banshees screamed over them, firing plasma bolts at the advancing guards.

"Take them down before they wipe us out!" ordered the lieutenant.

Massed blaster fire again filled the sky, and peppered the Banshees. One of the Banshees shuddered from multiple impacts that cratered its armour, and smoke belched out of it until it was swallowed by a fireball, the remains crashing to the ground. The other one swooped by, and fired the Fuel Rod Cannon. A bright, radioactive green light caught three of the guards, hurling their smoking bodies back to the ground.

More blaster fire came at it, though far more sporadically as the guards scattered to avoid another strafing run. The Banshee swooped down again, and fired its plasma cannons. Blue plasma sprayed across the guards, sometimes hitting them, but created small glassy craters in the ground a lot more.

A large blaster bolt flew at the Banshee, connected and destroyed it. The remains crashed to the ground before the shocked lieutenant even as four Gian landspeeders pulled up.

"You called?" asked the pilot of the lead landspeeder.

The lieutenant snapped out his shock. "Yeah. We gotta push these bastards back to wherever they came from. We'll need the heavy firepower."

"You've got it right here. Boys and girls, saddle up and move out! Provide our boys with some heavy firepower!"

The landspeeders roared off, and assumed positions across the plaza, even as they traded blaster bolts with plasma fire from the three Shade turrets that were set up. The Brutes fought hard to keep their position, even as more of them fell to the blasters of the guards and the heavy cannons of the landspeeders. They formed a circle with a three metre radius from the gravity lift, as the guards started to advance closer.

But they payed a high price for their gains. One guard was struck by three superheated spikes, which punctured his armour, and tore into internal organs. Another dropped to the ground, a smoking hole in his forehead, courtesy of Jackal snipers who had taken to the barricades. More guards were killed as high velocity grenades from Brute Shots detonated.

The only thing keeping the guards from outright losing was the arrival of more security detachments, arriving in Flash speeders, and bringing heavier firepower.

Brutes were killed when their barricades were destroyed under the force of multiple heavy lasers, then hit by many laser bolts. Also working in the favour of the RSF was the fact that Brutes worked better on the offensive, rather than defending.

"Looks like we got this one rather easily," remarked the lieutenant to the officer in charge of the recent arrival of more guards.

"Yeah, maybe they aren't so tough after all."

But even as the guards advanced, and as the Brutes fought back, Brute Choppers descended from the bowels of the Assault Carrier, and roared out of the barricade.

"What are those?" yelled one guard, seconds before the Brute Chopper slammed into him.

The guard's broken body flew into a wall, and collapsed, as the Choppers fired their 35mm Autocannons. Shells tore into the area surrounding the guards, hurling debris everywhere. One of the Gian speeders turned to fire at a Chopper that was headed straight for it.

The Brute piloting it paid no mind to the blaster bolts that whipped past it. He had a maniacal grin upon his face as he activated the Chopper's boost function. The Chopper accelerated to twice its speed, and rammed the Gian Speeder. The speeder was torn apart from the impact as the blades chewed up armour, components and flesh.

Screams echoed from the doomed speeders as the Brute Choppers systematically wiped out the Gian Speeders across the plaza, losing many of their own in the process.

The lieutenant in charge was about to order a retreat as he watched his forces become decimated by the rampaging Choppers, before one rammed him, cutting off any orders that he had in mind.

The guards still surviving formed tight clusters, and focused on the Choppers. Eventually, as more blaster fire filled the plaza, the last of the Choppers died down, their driver's slumped over the controls, smoking holes in their thick hides.

The surviving guards couldn't celebrate, as their latest challenge descended from the gravity lift.

The Brute Chieftain roared, raised his Gravity Hammer, jumped off the gravity lift, and charged at the guards.

* * *

A.N: I think that there would a nice place to stop, for now at least. Sorry for how long this took, I got bogged down over it doing other things, and then came Christmas and New year. Busy time for me, even with holidays, so I offer my sincere apologies. 

The RSF are Naboo's security forces, just in case you didn't know. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter, and I shall hopefully get the next chapter up in two weeks time. And for anyone wondering, the clones will come in much later. Remember to review! Laters, people, and I wish you all good luck for 2008!


	13. Quarantine

The Intergalactic War

By Chief Ratchet

(A.N: Sorry about the wait. The file was deleted when an angry computer hid my account, and then, it had to be restored. So sorry about that. For a little clearing up, in case I haven't mentioned it before, cut the Divine Blade's length by half, as well as the Super MAC's length. Keep pretty much everything else the same though.)

Reviews:

Ranger24: Yep, Naboo's definitely in a spot of trouble, and not just from Brutes. Everyone should have the Master Chief on speed dial. Too bad that right now, you'd probably get his voice mail….

Star wars 2136: That portion of the chapter was actually inspired by part of the British desert campaign from Call of Duty 2, which featured tanks and deserts, and bunkers, and also inspired by a bit of Command and Conquer 3. Now, if only I could find a way to bring Mammoth Tanks with railguns into this story…. My knowledge of the Star Wars universe is admittedly quite limited, with the whole thing being enormous, with so many things. So, I don't even know a B3 Ultra Battle Droid, but, again, wait and see. Who knows? Maybe a horde of Mammoth Tanks will come in and turn it into rubble.

Carlo707: Yes, sounds like Command and Conquer 3, doesn't it?

Anonymous review: Thanks for the tip. Damn. Can't believe I forgot that, and it was mentioned in Halo: The Flood as well. I'll try not to make that mistake again, thanks for pointing it out.

Chapter 13: Quarantine

* * *

The Brute Chieftain raised his Gravity Hammer, let out an angry roar and leapt off the platform. He landed, and bounded for the closest cluster of security guards, ignoring the blaster bolts that did little to his amour. In a few seconds, he was right in front of the group, and swung the hammer with a mighty blow into the chest of the closest guard.

The hammer, aided by the Brute's enormous strength and the gravity field, smashed the guard into and through a wall. The gravity field had the effect of knocking back the others as well. He swung again, and smashed another guard into the wall, before using the other end of the hammer and bringing it down on yet another guard's head. The guard collapsed, and the Chieftain swung once more, scattering the remaining guards. He looked down, and saw a guard still alive. With a snort, he raised his foot and brought it down, ending the guard's life.

He snarled as more blaster bolts pelted his armour, most of which failed to get through the shielding as well. Running to another group of guards, he swung again, and sent most of the guards flying into walls.

On the gravity lift, more lower-ranked Brutes were pouring out in numbers, along with Jackals and Grunts. A Hunter pair even descended, followed by a pair of Wraith tanks, with an escort of Ghosts and Choppers. Shade Turrets were used to turn any possible entrance into a chokepoint, with stationary shield generators used by the normal ground troops as barricades.

Before long, a massive army had been gathered at the base of the Assault Carrier. The Brute Chieftain was grunting orders to the various Brutes gathered, placing the Wraiths at the front of the column, with the other vehicles gathered behind. Jump pack equipped Brutes jetted out of the Assault Carrier's launch bays, armed with the lighter Plasma Rifles and Carbines, to launch raiding attacks against the defenders.

Once the appropriate forces had been assembled, in a show of Covenant might, the assault began in earnest.

Wraiths hurled meteoric plasma mortars into the sky. The tightly packed bundles of blue plasma traced parabolic lines in the sky as they arced towards their destination. Security troops ducked down instinctively as the blue orbs graceful came down. A thunderclap of an explosion rocked the ground, hurling pieces of debris, equipment and body parts into the air. Dust continued to rain down even as the tanks hurled more mortars, one after another, into the sky. The relentless barrage never ceased, until the two opposing sides caught sight of each other. With a battle cry that rivalled the Brutes savage fury, blaster bolts and superheated metal spikes filled the space between them.

The defenders had managed to muster up a trio of Gian landspeeders, whose laser cannons were proving their worth. Every time the cannons fired, another Brute body dropped to the ground. But there were many more to take their place, and each one as furious and unrelenting as the last.

"Hold your ground!" shouted the officer in charge.

The troops ducked behind whatever cover they could find, popping out to return fire with the Brutes, who advanced behind the shield walls of the Jackals. Lasers were soaked up by the shields, often staggering the Jackal holding it. Blobs of green plasma splashed across the cover of the defenders. A Plasma Grenade was hurled from behind the glowing wall, and bounced off a wall, dropping to the ground. The explosive whined, increasing in inaudible volume through the whining of plasma weapons and sounds of blasters going off.

"Forward warriors! Slay these heathens, burn them to the ground!" roared the Brute Chieftain. The Brutes under his command roared in response, and as one, surged forward.

Jackals hastily flung themselves to the side as the Brutes charged at the defenders, caring not for the blaster bolts that struck them. Within seconds of charging, the first wave of Brutes had been slain, their bodies trampled under the feet of the Brutes behind. The second mass of Brutes had barely been slaughtered before they fell upon the defenders.

Maulers, Spikers and the blade of the Brute Shots were nothing less than lethal at the range they were fighting at. A Mauler barked, and ripped open the chest of one trooper. The Brute that had fired it was consumed by blaster bolts, but the group of troopers who had fired on the Brute were torn to shreds when a grenade from a Brute Shot detonated within their ranks, before Spiker fire killed who stood after. Brutes of all ranks and sizes fell, with the bodies of the security guards mingled within.

The view was visible from the Theed palace. The current queen of Naboo stood silently at the window, viewing what had become of the capital. Columns of smoke drifted up, and many buildings were destroyed. The blackened husks of a Wraith tank, and many lighter vehicles dotted the street. Bodies lay strewn throughout the entire city. The sound of blaster and plasma fire was still in the air, as the Brutes swept through all resistance, not caring if they had sustained massive losses.

* * *

"Your highness, we have to leave," the captain of the guard said as he and a small detachment of his most trusted troopers walked in.

The queen didn't move from the window.

"Your highness, I must insist," the captain said more forcefully.

A sad sigh escaped from the painted lips of the queen, as she turned to face the captain. Her mouth opened, but a scream replaced what she was going to say when the window shattered.

A Brute, wearing a jump pack and a frenzied grin, lifted the Plasma Rifle it clutched in its massive hands at the queen. Before it could fire, ten blaster bolts had hammered through its personal shields, armour and thick skull.

It dropped to the ground, dead.

The captain strode over, and helped the queen up to her feet. Her white face was even paler, if that was possible. She took a shaky breath.

"Very well captain. Lead the way," the queen said, straightening.

The delegation hurried out of the palace, and into the hangar. Four guards were scanning the corridor, and had their blasters raised when the captain, the queen and a small number of guards with a few handmaidens stepped out into their sight.

"Sir!" one of the guards called out. "Your highness, glad to see you got out."

"Skip the talks. Get onto the ship," the captain ordered.

The group ran into the hangar, where the royal starship and a pair of aging N-1 Starfighters sat, their pilots standing near their ships, gripping blaster pistols.

Within moments, the royal starship and her two escorts were flying out of the hangar. The Brutes, though seeing the escape, was powerless to do anything. The Assault Carrier's weapons weren't charged, and without a fleet in orbit, the trio of ships escaped into the realm of hyperspace.

* * *

The Arbiter strode through the clean halls of the Alliance's orbital headquarters. Many people, alien and human, most of which were of a shorter stature than the Arbiter, hurried out of his way. He turned the corner, and walked into the office of Admiral Pellaeon.

"Admiral," the Arbiter greeted as he stood.

Pellaeon sat in his chair, a troubled look on his face.

"What is so important here that you insist on a meeting in person?" the Arbiter questioned. "I have other matters to attend to."

"Of course. Which is why I have chosen to keep this meeting brief and to the point."

"Go on."

"I have received disturbing news. Only hours ago, a trio of ships exited out of hyperspace. They were carrying the queen of Naboo, one of planets contributing to the Alliance. The planet had fallen, under a few hours ago, by five ships. _Covenant_ ships," Pellaeon stressed, looking at the Arbiter.

For his worth, the Arbiter didn't even blink. Of course, he didn't know if he even could.

"If they were Covenant ships, then they were not under my command. None of my ships have gone any further than the battlefields that I have ordered them to."

"But they were Covenant ships, I cannot discount the fact that the might have come from your fleet."

"I assure you, no ship in my fleet has gone astray."

"How do you keep exact records of every ship? Your fleet is large- numbering hundreds of ships. How do you know that a few might not want to be under your command?"

The Arbiter clicked his mandibles in annoyance. "It must have been the Brutes. Some must have escaped from the early battles."

"How do you know?"

"If it makes you feel better, I shall send a cruiser to investigate. I cannot spare any more, not with the offensive you have planned."

"Very well then. I'll leave it up to you."

The Arbiter nodded, and stalked out of the office. "If you want proof that neither I nor my ships have had any hands in this, ask the survivors," the Arbiter said, before fully leaving.

The Phantom which the Arbiter had taken to the orbital headquarters docked in the _Divine Blade_'s cavernous launch bays. All around, technicians of all races, from humans, to Elites, to Grunts and to the Engineers worked on the various fighters, preparing them for the battle that was soon to follow.

* * *

On the bridge, the Arbiter called up Spec Ops Commander Rtas Vadumee. He had dropped the 'ee' suffix when the war with the Brutes began, but had reattached it ever since the new Covenant was established.

"Arbiter," the Commander greeted.

"Rtas, I hope you are well," the Arbiter began.

"Not too bad, all things considered. Thank you for asking."

"I need you to assemble four teams of warriors like yourself. Take them and yourself to the CSS-battlecruiser _Heaven's Tears_. I need you to investigate a disturbance, which our friends want us to investigate."

"I'll have it done soon, Arbiter. Rtas out."

The screen shut off, and the Arbiter was left standing on the raised section of the control room, overlooking the other officer's work. He wondered if he should send the SPARTAN-III's under his command. Tapping a few keys on his console, he sent an order for three teams of four SPARTAN-III's to be assembled and sent to the _Heaven's Tears_.

The large holographic displays across the room, which not only bathed everything in the entire room with a soft blue hue showed the world of space around them. The _Heaven's Tears_, hardly distinguishable from the other gathering UCNC ships, turned away from the fleet and moved off, before jumping into Slipspace.

* * *

"What are the demons doing here?" hissed one black armoured Elite.

The bay of the _Heaven's Tears_ was loaded with Phantoms, Seraphs, Banshees and more unusually, a trio of bulky Pelicans. Three teams of four slight SPARTAN-IIIs moved crates of weaponry, equipment and all necessary items required for an operation from the Pelicans. The SPI armour they wore continually faded from a dark purple to a gunmetal green as they moved from the Pelicans. Already a significant pile was accumulating. In another corner stood multiple Covenant weapon crates, where a group of Elites were arming themselves.

"They are not the demons," growled Rtas 'Vadumee as he walked into the bay. Years of experience had taught him the difference between the SPARTAN-IIs and the IIIs. "And they are here by the Arbiter's orders. And you _will_ treat them like you would your team members."

One of the SPARTAN-IIIs walked up to 'Vadumee, and raised his hand in a salute. "Sir, the Arbiter has stated that we are to assist you in investigating the disturbance."

The black clad Elite who had spoken earlier huffed and turned away, walking over to a weapons crate that had been brought down.

"Then you shall assist us. What are your designations?" asked 'Vadumee.

"Fire Teams Sierra, Tango and Charlie."

"That is all. Continue," Rtas ordered.

The SPARTAN saluted once more, and walked back over to his cohorts, who were starting to open crates.

The thirty one black clad Elites around the bay were busying themselves, whether it was making a check of their armour or arming themselves. Many of the Elites were wearing the standard Combat helmet, coloured black to differentiate from the standard colours the normal Elites wore. A significant number, perhaps a third to a quarter of them were wearing the Assault helmet, also coloured black. They were arming themselves with Carbines or Plasma Rifles, clipping the weapons to their back or leg magnetic holsters. However, a single Elite gravitated towards the pile of human weapon containers, earning a look from the SPARTAN pulling the containers open.

The Elite ignored the look, and helped pry a container open. The Elite pulled out a pair of SMG's, and glanced at them.

"What are you doing?" the SPARTAN questioned. It was female.

"Choosing my armaments," the Elite said.

"Sorry, no Covenant weapons here. Try over where you buddies are," the SPARTAN said.

"I prefer these. Do you have any of the sound reducing devices?"

"Silencers? Here," the SPARTAN said, pulling out a pair for the SMG's and handing them over.

"My thanks," the Elite said, pulling out a MA5C Assault Rifle. "Do you have any 'silencers' for this?"

The SPARTAN handed over another one, which the Elite managed to fit on. After fitting on all three, the SPARTAN grabbed a handful of magazines for the SMG's and another handful for the MA5C and gave them to the Elite.

"Here, you'll need these. Those weapons you're holding eat up the lead real fast."

"Thank you, SPARTAN."

"It's Rebecca."

The Elite looked surprise, his hand stopped halfway out of a crate with another bundle of magazines. Had one of the Demons told him her name?

"Thank you, Rebecca. My name is 'Yhanamee."

The SPARTAN, Rebecca, nodded and turned back to opening crates. 'Yhanamee walked to a Covenant weapons crate, and grabbed Plasma Grenades, clipping them to his belt.

* * *

Two hours passed without incident, and the members of the investigation team were sitting in the bay with little to do, having armed themselves and briefed already. A group of SPARTAN-III's were sitting in a group and playing a game with cards. Some of the Elites were talking in low voices, while others stood, leaned against the wall or sat, looking bored.

The door to the bay opened, and everyone in it glanced up. Rtas 'Vadumee entered, along with a group of Elites in red armour and a trio of human pilots. The ship seemed to shudder.

"We have exited Slipspace," Rtas announced. "We will be leaving in five units. Prepare yourselves."

The reaction was near instantaneous. Most of the SPARTAN-III's leapt to their feet and saluted, acknowledging 'Vadumee as their commanding officer, while the Elites bowed their head in respect. The warriors then filed onto the ships, followed by the pilots and 'Vadumee.

In space, many thousands of kilometres away from the planet of Naboo, a single CSS-Battlecruiser exited out of Slipspace. The ship powered up again, and rumbled towards the pristine planet. There was an ugly smear of black and red that was visible on the planet, however.

In the Control Room, the ship's commander, a golden Shipmaster stood alone, like most typical Covenant ships. He viewed the planet from the main display, and pressed a holographic button.

"Magnify that section of the planet," he ordered.

The report showed that the 'smear' was a five kilometre long swath of flames and blackened ground. Bits and pieces of a silvery metal were visible scattered around the blackened section. The report showed that the pieces were consistent with parts from an Assault Carrier.

"An Assault Carrier? What was one doing there?" he asked himself. "Move us towards the planet. Tell the teams to prepare for launch."

The cruiser steadily advanced closer, until it was only a few kilometres from orbit.

"Launch the Phantoms and Pelicans," the Shipmaster ordered.

The bay, which held the seven dropships, lit up as several alarms blared. All of the personnel near the bay hurried away as it slowly depressurised. The Phantoms and Pelicans, already holding their occupants and air locked, were unaffected by the lack of atmosphere.

The door then slid apart, revealing the blackness of space dotted with the face of Naboo. The Pelicans jets fired up, and joined each other to create a noiseless roar. The seven ships fired up, and flew out of the bay. The blast door slid shut behind them.

The ships descended through the atmosphere, their edges glowing red through the friction of re-entry. Inside all of the ships, their passengers were rocked as Phantoms and Pelicans broke through and steadied.

"Warriors, make sure your Active Camouflage is working," Rtas ordered. "We are to land in the capital of this world, and investigate what has gone wrong. Anything may be hostile, so be prepared."

"Excellency, we are one and a half units out," the voice of the pilot said.

"SPARTANS, LZ is three minutes. Get ready for drop," the Pelican pilot reported.

Throughout the Pelicans, a series of resounding _clacks_ echoed, as the SPARTAN-III's readied their weapons.

* * *

The dropships buzzed over the city of Theed. Curiously, no kind of response greeted them. Before long, all seven were gathered above an empty plaza. The Pelicans fired their belly jets, and descended slowly, whilst the Phantoms remained in the air.

"SPARTANS, go go go!" shouted one SPARTAN, and was drowned out by the feet of SPARTANS storming down the ramps, some jumping off the end.

The Elites descended through the Phantom's miniaturised gravity lift. Touching down, they pulled out Carbines, Plasma Rifles or Particle Beam Rifles, and held them ready. Rtas 'Vadumee came down, and the Pelicans and Phantoms flew off in formation.

Their LZ was empty, devoid of life, despite being designed for people to enjoy it.

"What is this?" growled one Elite holding a Carbine.

"Whatever it is, we shall root it out. Warriors, engage Active Camouflage!" shouted 'Vadumee.

In response, all thirty-two Elites, 'Vadumee included, faded from view. The SPARTAN-III's, with their SPI Armour, blended in with the environment surrounding them. The SPI Armour faded into the background, a drab yellow.

Silently, the force moved, slowly parting into seven groups. Seven groups of ghosts, quiet as the wind, slinked around buildings, sliding down alleys, climbed ladders, and peeked around corners, never more visible than a slight flicker. The new photo-reactive plates of the latest version of the SPI Armour mimicked the surrounding environment much more efficiently and effectively than the last version.

The groups met up at an intersection. The blackened, broken roads as well as bodies and remains of vehicles gave the first indication of a battle.

"Brutes," whispered one Elite over the comm.

"So, it looks like we weren't responsible after all," another Elite said.

"Quiet!" forcibly whispered 'Vadumee. "We need to check for any more Brutes. Advance to that structure there; reports say that it is a palace for the ruling party of this planet. There may be more Brutes inside. Move."

As silent as they were before, the SPARTANS and Elites moved off again. Once more, they became ghosts, sliding among ruined streets as well as the intact ones. It took them over half an hour to reach the entrance to the palace, which were locked down.

"Place the charges," 'Vadumee ordered. "The rest of you, cover them."

He could see the outlines of Fire Team Sierra moving towards the doors and pulling explosives out of their pouches. The rest of the force took cover behind various pieces of debris, propping up weapons or readying them.

"Sir, charges are set," whispered one SPARTAN.

"Everyone, move away!"

Four detonators were pressed. Four fingers touched the red button which sent a signal to the charges. Four explosions consumed the door, throwing them inward and deeper into the structure.

The teams recovered, and were slowly making their way up to the building.

Once inside, and having secured the immediate area, seven teams of SPARTAN-III's and Elites faded into view. 'Vadumee stood in the centre.

"Fan out, secure the building. Find the rest of the hairy beasts, and slaughter them," 'Vadumee ordered. "Engage Active Camouflage."

Once more, they disappeared from view, and slid away, in seven different directions.

* * *

Rtas' team descended down a carved staircase, taking them lower into the bowels of the structure. The Spec Ops Commander had a Carbine in his hands, and a pair of Plasma Rifles as well as the hilt of an Energy Sword attached to his leg holsters.

The sound of clicking feet instantly put the group alert. They methodically spread out around the room they had entered. Ever since entering, they had met no resistance. A Grunt rounded the corner, hurrying forward and bumped into the invisible leg of one of the Elites.

The Grunt squealed in horror as it was fell back, and a black clad Spec Ops Elite appeared. The Elite raised its Plasma Rifle, ready to bring it down on the cowering Grunt's head when a voice boomed, "Stay your hand, warrior!"

The Elite stopped, seconds from clubbing the Grunt. It peeked out from under its hands, which were covering its eyes.

Rtas faded into visibility, and walked over, grabbing the Grunt and lifting it to its feet. "Who are you with?"

"Th-the B-Brutes," squeaked the Grunt. "They make me work for them- fight as well. Me no like Brutes."

"Where are they?" demanded 'Vadumee.

"Dead!" the Grunt said. "The parasite caused it!"

The Grunt's statement caused a ripple of murmuring to begin among the Elites.

"The Parasite?" asked 'Vadumee.

"Around corner!"

Rtas walked over, and looked around, sniffing the air. He didn't smell the stench that had come to associate with the Flood. But he rounded the corner, and stopped dead.

Hanging like a foul mist, the air further down the corridor was permeated with the thick, porous sickly yellow-green mist that followed the Flood. The stench was there. And a squishing echo sounded.

He whipped around, and ran back to the room where the rest of his team was gathered.

"Excellency?" asked one of the Elites. Two of them had Plasma Rifles aimed at the Grunt.

"The Parasite is here! We must get out, now!" he ordered. "Take the Grunt with us."

The Elites stiffened, and nodded. One grabbed the Grunt as they hurriedly rushed back to the staircase. Behind them, the echoing noises were growing in volume.

"All teams, fall back! We must evacuate from this building! The Flood is present!" 'Vadumee ordered, even as he ran with the others.

Soon, all seven teams were gathered at the entrance.

"We must alert the _Heaven's Tears_," 'Vadumee said.

They all nodded, and ran out of the building, blocking the entrance as best they could.

"_Heaven's Tears_, do you read?" 'Vadumee asked.

"This is the _Heaven's Tears_. What is it, Commander 'Vadumee?"

"Alert the Arbiter. The Flood have a presence here!"

There was silence on the other end. "We are contacting the Arbiter now. Prepare to leave the planet. The Phantoms are waiting."

They were about to move, when something behind them crashed. The Grunt squealed in terror, as a series of horribly misshapen monsters jumped out of the building.

"Destroy them!" 'Vadumee shouted.

A tidal wave of metal and plasma washed over the forms to get out. Many were simply vaporised as the bullets and plasma ripped them to pieces.

"Move!" shouted 'Vadumee, even as more combat forms leapt out, followed by infection forms skittering on the ground.

A battle broke out, and the investigation team was forced to run as more and more Flood broke through. Bodies piled up as they ran, but more took their places. Every time a burst of bullets ripped apart one combat form, two more leapt in. Every time a plasma shot washed over a group of infection forms, a _hundred_ more took their place.

The group ran, stopped, turned to fire a few bursts, and ran again. Combat forms were trampled under more combat forms, before infection forms began to squabble over the body, returning new life to it.

"Hold here!" shouted 'Vadumee, as they ducked behind fallen slabs of duracrete. "Wait for the Phantoms to arrive!"

They answered with a barrage of bullets and plasma.

All of the SPARTANs were emptying clip after clip of ammunition at the oncoming horde. Fire Team Sierra fired in short bursts. Every burst they fired cut down another Flood form, or shredded a group of Infection forms. Plasma fire lashed out, and burned Flood bodies.

Rebecca, indistinguishable from the other SPARTAN-III's in their armour, fired a full clip at full automatic into the crowd. The Flood wilted under the bullets, some of them missing body parts. Next to her, Collins fired a Battle Rifle as fast as he could pull the trigger and aim. A burst of three bullets sliced through the air, and buried into a Flood form, dropping it as three Carbine shots struck the one standing next to it.

"Holy flare!" shouted one of the Elites, priming a Plasma Grenade and throwing it.

The explosive glowed and hissed as it flew over the lines of tracer fire and plasma, adhering to a group of Carrier forms. The device glowed menacingly as the Carrier form advanced without care of the device attached to it, into a group of Combat forms.

A bright blue explosion consumed the Carrier in a strikingly beautiful but dangerous cloud, detonating it and all the other Carriers around it. A sequence of _pops_ and _bangs_ tore apart the Flood rear ranks, hurling the bodies of fallen Combat forms high over, splattering to the ground in front of the Elites and SPARTANs.

'Yhanamee crouched behind cover, the twin silenced SMG's in his hand coughing as they spat silent death at the Flood. Around him, his comrades fired Carbines, the radioactive green trails filling the air with the glowing red-orange of bullets. The rounds buried themselves with thuds against the Flood bodies, as three grenades detonated with a roar in the Flood ranks.

A wave of plasma fire flew over their shoulders suddenly, as four Phantoms hovered over them, their triple Plasma Cannons spewing fire. Behind them, the trio of Pelicans sat on the ground, their engines idling and ramps open.

"Get aboard!" the pilots shouted.

The SPARTAN-III's needed no more encouragement, let alone 'Vadumee shouting at them to go. They thundered up the ramps of the Pelicans, as the Elites were whisked up by the Phantom's gravity lifts, firing and throwing grenades as they did so. The Phantoms burned down the next line of Flood forms as the Pelicans unleased a barrage of missiles from their wing-mounted missile pods. A series of red, yellow and orange explosions blossomed, and ripped the Flood ranks to pieces, hurling giblets of flesh and tentacles against the ships.

The seven ships rose up as one, flying up through the atmosphere to reach the safety of the _Heaven's Tears_ launch bays.

* * *

Once more, the Arbiter found himself striding through the Alliance's orbital headquarters. This time, he was headed for the meeting room. He clutched a data crystal in his clawed hands. Reaching the room, the door slid open to reveal Admiral Pellaeon, General Wedge Antilles, Admiral Ontinvere and two other generals.

"What is the purpose of this, Arbiter?" asked Pellaeon.

"Thank you all for coming on such a short notice," the Arbiter began. "Less than three hours ago, the CCS-Battlecruiser Heaven's Tears, which I had sent to investigate the events surrounding the loss of one of your planets. I had sent four teams of my Special Operations warriors along with the Special Operations Commander. In addition to that, three fireteams of SPARTAN-III's were sent as well. I had just got word from the teams; Brute ships had destroyed the fleet surrounding the planet."

"So it wasn't your ships?"

"No. But upon descending into the palace, they encountered something- a parasitic life form called the Flood."

"The Flood?" asked Wedge.

"This is some of the combat footage taken from one of the soldier's personal unit," the Arbiter said, placing the crystal into a slot.

The display lit up.

The footage showed a Spec Ops Elite about to club the Grunt, until Rtas ordered the Elite to stop. The video showed the group stay where they were, until Rtas came back, and ordered all of them to get out. It showed their run back to the surface, and the first shots fired as the Flood broke out of the palace. Most of the occupants in the room had a disgusted look on their face as they watched the harrowing escape from the planet.

The Arbiter paused and turned off the display.

"The Flood are a virulent, parasitic life form that thrives on the bodies of the living. Here in this data crystal is a database of all known Flood forms. The Flood take on many forms, and can only be stopped by nothing less than total annihilation."

He ran through the basics of the Flood- the pod-like Infection form with its tentacles. The combat form- both Human, Elite and Brute, with its ability to use weapons and whip-like appendages. The bloated Carrier Form, a walking explosive filled with Infection forms. And the Pure Forms; the Stalker form, the Tank form, and the Ranged form.

"These parasites must be destroyed at all costs. Should a single Carrier form, or even an Infection Form escape from the planet, they might become nigh unstoppable. I understand that this is your galaxy. But I ask that I take care of this- not only do our soldiers have a greater understanding of the danger, but we have no way to assess your weapons effectiveness. I must pull at the very least a hundred ships away from the offensive- a quarantine zone must be established."

"Hey, wait a minute. If these 'Flood' can be stopped by simply killing all of them, why not just land some soldiers, and wipe them out?"

"Such an assault is a very costly and time consuming one. We would lose hundreds, thousands even, of soldiers trying to wipe them out," the Arbiter answered.

"Is there another way?" asked another general, a Twi'lek.

"Yes there is."

"Then inform us," Pellaeon said.

"The only way of stopping the Flood outright would be at the minimum a half hour orbital bombardment with plasma torpedos," the Arbiter said.

All the others looked shocked.

"Orbital bombardment? With your kind of weapons?"

"It is the only way to ensure no Flood spore survives and to ensure that we don't sustain any casualties."

"An orbital bombardment is out of the question! We can't just go around bombing planets with plasma!"

"Then we'll have to send a great deal of ships and manpower to establish a quarantine zone. By now, the Flood most certainly would have taken the entire city. If you want to save as many people as you can, you cannot let any ships evacuate from the planet. You have to keep the population contained to small camps."

"You're talking about confining the planet's population to the planet while a biological threat is on?" asked another general with disbelief.

"If you want to keep the Flood from spreading, then I would. If you want to risk the Flood escaping and assimilating billions for some million people, then evacuate them. But I highly advise against it. I have fought the Flood before. They do not care for anything except expanding their numbers. Overnight, their numbers can swell. I told you already, orbital bombardment is the most painless way to end this threat. But since you seem to avoid doing that, then I'll have to send large numbers of soldiers to establish camps and bases."

"I'll see what ships I can spare to assist you," put in Wedge.

"Same here. Though most of my fleet is spread thin, and I am not sure what I can actually send."

"Thank you," the Arbiter said. "I need to go and assemble my fleet."

With that, the Arbiter left the room, leaving Pellaeon and the other admirals and generals in the room.

"Now that that's been taken care of, we need to begin planning for an offensive to retake Thyferra. We need those bacta supplies, plus we've been on the defensive for too damned long. The UCNC should hopefully provide assistance…."

* * *

Over Coruscant, ninety four UCNC ships, a combination of Covenant and Human design, turned and made the jump to Slipspace. The Arbiter watched the cohesive jump from the Control Room of the _Divine Blade_.

"Hey Arbiter. What's up," came a grizzled voice from behind him.

The Arbiter turned, to see Sgt. Johnson walking up. The black Sergeant was fully clad in armour, with an M6G Pistol in his thigh holster.

"Johnson," the Arbiter greeted.

"Nice set up you've got here, with the decorations and everything. I like."

"Thank you."

"I hear that you've got yourselves into the deep again. What's happenin'?"

"We're fighting against an enemy who is using robotic droids as their main soldiers. But they send the droids in huge numbers, sweeping through defences with numbers."

"Sounds fun."

"You'll rethink that when you get deployed."

"Can't wait," Johnson said, turning to leave as Cortana appeared on her pedestal.

"Johnson."

"Cortana. Aren't you normally with the Chief?"

"He can handle himself. He's a big boy now."

"Where is the big guy anyway?"

"He's been deployed," the Arbiter answered.

"Glad to hear he's still kicking ass. Besides, he'll need the head start once Sergeant A.J. Johnson joins the party!"

Johnson's light laugh echoed throughout the halls of the _Divine Blade_ as he walked off.

* * *

A.N: I wonder how many of you are wondering where the heck was I? Well, all I can say was that I'm pretty busy now, with Year 11 and all. Chemistry, Math Studies, Specialist Math, Physics and Economics along with a whole range of other subjects does not bode well for my fanfic writing time.

I had this chapter ready for a while, but I couldn't get the words down on paper (Word, to be more exact). But then, after I watched a little Battlestar Galactica on Youtube, guess what, inspiration struck me with a sledgehammer.

So now the Flood is in the fray. I had more for this chapter planned, but I ended up deciding that it'll go into the next chapter, whenever that is. I hope you're still reading this by the time I get the next chapter up. Which will admittedly take quite a while, but I plan for a longer chapter. Not exceptionally long, just quite a bit longer than the last couple.

I'll admit it as well. Command and Conquer 3 had really gotten hold of my attention a lot, and even six months later I still play against the comp, and still enjoy it. Nothing quite like watching Mammoth Tanks steamroll a Nod base into smithereens.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and remember, every time you press that button that gives me a review, I get inspired to write faster for you guys. Also, I've decided that it's too time-consuming to answer your reviews in the story. Next time you review, I'll be answering them with the reply function rather than in the chapter.


	14. Author's Note

As much as I would like it to be, this is unfortunately not another chapter, but instead yet another Author's Note, this time telling you that The Intergalactic War has most definitely been discontinued.

Like I've told most people before: I've written it into a hole that I cannot write out of again. That or I can't muster up the will to continue it. Take your pick.

But there's always a silver lining: I've typed up and posted the first chapter of the new Intergalactic War! It's under the title The Intergalactic War, Revised, unsurprisingly. So go check it out if you're still interested in this story: it'll have the same concepts, but a major difference and hopefully much better writing in both quality and to keep the characters in-character.

Thanks for reading, and I do hope to see your review and/or criticisms for the newly redone Intergalactic War, Revised. Flames as always will be used to bring some much needed warmth to me.

Until later,

Chief Ratchet.


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